Descendant of the Gravity Bearer
by Byakurai Namikaze
Summary: On the bridge in Wave, Naruto unlocks his Kekkei Genkai. What will happen when Naruto has control over gravity and can create barriers? NaruHina LaylexAltea Not yaoi, as I don't write it. Rated T for language.
1. Chapter 1

**Okay, I've had this idea floating around in my head for a while, and I finally decided to work on it. No, my OC will not even be mentioned in this fic, as he does not exist in this AU. I will probably alternate between this and HOTB. Anyway, this starts when Haku tries to save Zabuza, and goes from there.**

0o0o0o0o0

"I'm sorry, Naruto, but I can't die yet," Haku said as he teleported away.

"No, Haku, you can't die yet," Naruto said, trying to stop him. He took one step forward when suddenly time seemed to stop.

"Do you want to save your friend?" a voice echoed. Naruto looked around, but couldn't see anyone. "Oh, sorry. You can't see me, can you?"

A figure fazed into being. The person was blond with blue eyes and had a blue crystal on his right cheek. He wore a high-colared beige jacket with chain mail at the shoulders and extending halfway to his elbows, a brown shirt under it, blue jeans, and black shoes.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked as he backed up a bit, wondering if this was a trick of the Kyuubi.

"I am Layle, one of your ancestors, Naruto Uzumaki," the figure responded. "But you didn't answer my question."

"Yes, I do want to save him," Naruto said.

Layle smiled. "Good. Now hold still for a second."

Naruto tensed as Layle raised his left arm and a blue and purple sphere seemed to surround it. The sphere detached from Layle's hand and shot towards Naruto, slamming into him.

Naruto cried out in slight pain and shock as another crystal sprouted from his right cheek and a second formed on his breastplate.

"What was that?" Naruto asked Layle.

"I only unlocked your powers, Naruto," Layle explained. "Your 'Kekkei Genkai,' as it's called today."

"But what about Haku? He's probably dead by now!" Naruto said as he realized how long he had been talking with his ancestor.

"This is only happening in your mind, Naruto," Layle explained. "It's real, yes, but all of this is only a split second in the real world."

"Okay, so I can save him!" Naruto said excitedly.

"You can, and I'll be telling you how to use your powers the whole time," Layle confirmed. "Now go!"

Layle faded as time restarted. Naruto summoned the same sphere Layle did and moved, determined to save his friend.

0o0o0

Kakashi charged Zabuza, his Lightning Blade chirping. Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of him as he tried to stab Zabuza.

_'The kid!'_ Kakashi thought as his eyes widened. _'Damn, I can't stop in time!'_

Suddenly a sphere of energy encased Kakashi, and he shot back a few feet. _'What the hell?'_ thought everyone who saw the strange event.

The sphere vanished from Kakashi and reappeared on Haku, who shot in the direction he came from and landed as Naruto walked out of the mist, his hand raised and encased in a smaller sphere.

"Naruto? How-?" Kakashi stuttered, then gasped as he saw Naruto's cheek. _'What the hell happened?'_

Naruto shot him a look that said "I'll explain later" and turned to Zabuza. "It's over, Zabuza. You've lost."

"He's right, Zabuza," a voice said. "I'm so disappointed in you."

Everyone turned and saw Gato, the criminal who terrorized Wave, standing in front of what looked like a thousand bandits as the mist dissipated.

"So you did betray me, Gato," Zabuza said as he glared at the man.

"Of course I did," Gato said, then noticed Haku. "Heh, I need to repay that brat for breaking my arm. Men, kill everyone!"

Some of the bandits raised guns and fired in rapid succession, only to see the bullets freeze as they hit a strange purple and blue wall.

The shinobi looked at Naruto to see his hand raised and encased in energy.

Naruto gestured and the bullets flipped over. He getsured again and sent the bullets back at Gato and his men.

Gato ducked as the bullets came flying back and shouted, "Men! Whoever kills that blond brat gets a 50% bonus!" He ran to his boat as the bandits charged.

Naruto panted as the bandits charged. He didn't think he had the energy to help.

_'Give me control for a minute, Naruto,'_ Layle said in his mind.

_'Alright,'_ Naruto agreed.

Naruto started to fall forward but Layle, who was now in control, stopped him.

"Naruto, are you okay?" Kakashi asked as he somehow consumed a food pill without taking off his mask, making even the bandits wonder how he did that.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Layle responded, knowing that the ninja wouldn't understand that Naruto's ancestor was in control of his body. "I'll deal with these guys."

He encased both hands in energy and rose them as the weapons of all the ninja near him, including Zabuza's sword, rose off the ground and floated between the shinobi and bandits, pointed at the latter.

"Still want to fight?" Layle asked.

The bandits considered it before one started to back away, then more. Soon, all of the bandits were running as Layle encased Gato in energ then brought the businessman in front of the shinobi, still floating.

"Now, Gato, I believe you have some checks to write," Layle said, sweating a bit. 'Man, I'm getting rusty,' he thought. 'Oh well. I guess this is to be expected after who knows how long I've been gone.'

"Never!" Gato screamed.

"You sure? I could turn you over to Zabuza. Right?" he shouted the last part at Inari and the civilians, all of whom had just arrived at the bridge, armed and ready to fight. They roared in approval.

Gato's eyes widened as he took in the civilians, then glanced at Zabuza. "Alright, I'll do it! Just put me down!"

Layle obliged with a smirk.

As he set the man down, his vision blurred for a second. _'Damn, I thought I had more time,'_ he thought.

_'What happened?'_ Naruto, who had seen everything, asked him.

_'I guess I wasted a lot of your chakra,'_ Layle thought at Naruto. _'Sorry.'_

That was the last either of them thought as Naruto collapsed.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N, part two: Well, that's the first chapter! Like it? Hate it? Either way, review! I know it's short, but this is just the opening! Don't worry! The next chapters will be longer!**


	2. Explanations

**Sorry, but I have writer's block concerning a scene change in the next chapter of HOTB. Anyway, I thought that I might as well work on DOTGB until I get some inspiration. Also, in this story, I'm changing a few things about the Biju: One, the Ten-Tails never existed. Two, they are real demons instead of being giant masses of chakra with personalities. And three, Kyubi has a mate. Or had, I should say. Also, there will be no Sakura and/or Sasuke bashing. Maybe Kiba, but only one or two scenes out of the whole story. Maybe.**

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto let out a groan as he woke up. He sat up and looked around. He was not in a location that he knew, that much he could tell. He was sitting in what looked like a cross between a sewer and a military bunker, with leaking pipes and ankle-deep water.

"Where the hell am I?" he wondered out loud, and was answered with a slap on the back of his head.

"I would appreciate it if you watched your language, Naruto," a feminine voice said, and Naruto, rubbing his head, turned around.

Standing behind him were Layle and a female that he did not recognize. She had a beautiful face, yellow eyes, and short blond hair with what looked like large leaves braided into it at the back. She was wearing a blue long-sleeved denin jacket that stopped halfway to her waist, a faded red shirt, short white gloves that royalty wore, and a red-orange short scarf in the front that housed a green jewel. She was also wearing beige short shorts that had suspenders and a white belt, another belt except this was bronze-colored with what looked like armor at each side, long black socks that came up halfway to her thighs, and brown shoes. The woman looked to be about three years younger than Layle.

"Sorry, but who are you?" Naruto asked her.

The woman frowned. She looked at Layle and asked, "You didn't tell him?"

Layle sighed. "I didn't really have time to explain everything, Althea."

The woman now known as Althea sighed. "Very well. Naruto, I am Althea Sol Alfitaria, wife of Layle, former queen of the Lilty Kingdom, and Crystal Bearer of Barriers."

Naruto blinked. "You're my ancestor?"

"Yes," Althea said as she smiled.

"What's a Crystal Bearer?"

Layle answered, "A Crystal Bearer is a human who has a crystal magically infused with his or her body. All Crystal Bearers, except one, had their powers at birth. They are identified by a crystal somewhere on their bodies, like my right cheek or Althea's breastplate at the base of her neck."

Naruto absentmindedly touched the crystals on his right cheek and breastplate.

"When Althea gave birth to our first child, we discovered that a Crystal Bearer's powers can be passed to any offspring he or she produces," Layle explained further.

Althea blushed slightly at that part and said, "And we also discovered that Bearers that lost their powers can still pass their powers to their offspring as well."

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked. "How can Bearers lose their powers?"

Layle sighed and explained the story: from the Yuke tribe, a race of slender-built humans who always wore armor, was wiped from existence after the Lilty tribe destroyed the Yuke tribal crystal until a Yuke named Amidatelion, who was a Crystal Bearer with power over summoning, appeared and attempted to restore the Yuke tribal crystal by gathering its shards; to Amidatelion sacrficing himself by protecting Layle from Jegran, a Lilty and Crystal Bearer with the power to crystallize people; and ending with Layle's final fight with Jegran, killing him and restoring the Yuke crystal, which made all living Crystal Bearers except him lose their powers.

"Whoa," Naruto said. "That's quite the story. But how come you never lost your powers, Layle?"

Layle and Althea exchanged a look, both of them frowning in thought. "Honestly, I don't know," Layle answered.

"I have a theory about that," a feminine voice said, making the three turn to the voice. Standing there was a Yuke in dark green robes that Layle recognized. The Yuke's helmet was shaped similar to an eagle's head with a flat metal half-circle surrounding the top of it connected via rods that went into the base. Small bat-like wings could be seen on the back of its armor, identifying it as most likely male. Its spine was replaced with a blue crystal, signifying it as a Crystal Bearer.

"Amidatelion? What are you doing here?"

"I have no idea, but I would like to know where 'here' is," the Yuke responded, looking around.

"I could tell you that," another voice said, and the quartet turned to see a giant cage that wasn't there before. On the cage was a small note with the kanji for 'seal' written on it. Behind the cage was a giant fox with orange fur and nine tails laying on the ground and observing the four.

Amidatelion stiffened when he saw the tails. "You...you're the Nine-Tailed Fox Demon," he said in surprise and awe.

The fox grinned. "Indeed I am. I am surprised that you three Crystal Bearers are here, and that my vessel is a descendant of Layle."

"Vessel?" Amidatelion asked in confusion, then looked at Naruto. "Ah. Now I know where we are. We are in young Naruto's mindscape."

Naruto frowned. "This is my mindscape? I seriously need to remodel the place."

"Couldn't agree more," the fox said. "I should have booked this vacation in advance. Maybe I would have gotten a better place like a beach instead of a sewer."

"And whose fault is it that my mindscape is like this?" Naruto asked the fox, his face contorted in rage. "If you hadn't attacked the village, I wouldn't be the village pariah, and my parents, whoever they are, would still be alive."

"There seems to be a misunderstanding," Amidatelion said. "The Nine-Tailed Fox Demon, or Takeshi as that is his name, would not attack a town, village, or city unless someone from that village attacked him or his family first."

"You seem to know quite a bit, Yuke," Takeshi said. "But you are correct. I was tricked into attacking Konoha. Two men killed my mate and kit and one left behind a shinobi headband signifying that they were from Konoha."

Naruto frowned. "You had to have seen the guys. Did you get a good look at them?"

"Only one, but the other had a strange right hand. The one I got a good look at had pale skin, snake-like eyes, and long black hair."

"What was so strange about the other man's hand?" Layle asked.

"It looked like it was made of crystal. But it couldn't have been a Crystal Bearer. The last one before Naruto died thirty years ago."

"Maybe not," Layle said, frowning. _'Could Jegran have been ressurrected again? If not, then who was it? He never had any kids.'_

Takeshi shook his head. "The last Crystal Bearer's crystal was her left middle finger. This other one wasn't even the same gender."

"Anyway," Naruto said, "what was that theory you mentioned, Amidatelion?"

Amidatelion looked lost then said, "Oh, right. I believe that Layle retained his powers because they were still needed for some crisis in the future."

"If that's true, then you were right," Layle said. "A few years after the Yuke crystal was restored, Jegran was ressurrected somehow and attempted to destroy the Lilty crystal again, but I killed him."

"Perhaps the reason you kept your powers, Layle, is the same reason why Amidatelion is here," Althea said, thinking.

"But a Crystal Bearer's powers can't be transferred, if that's what you're thinking," Layle said. The he frowned, considering his words. He thought about when he woke Naruto's powers. "Wait, can they?"

"In theory, it should be possible, if you are thinking that I can transfer my powers to Naruto," Amidatelion said. "But I am not sure it is practical." He considered the situation. "But I will try."

He turned to Naruto and raised his hands to his torso, facing each other. A purple disk of energy formed between his hands, then floated to Naruto. The disk entered the blond Genin, who doubled over in pain.

Naruto yelled out as a smooth yellow crystal formed along the spine on his back . As soon as the pain had begun, it ended. He rose unsteadily. "That...hurt," he said. "I didn't think it would be that bad."

"I apologize for any discomfort you felt," Amidatelion said, bowing slightly.

"It's alright," Naruto said. Then the scene started to fade. "Wait, what's going on?"

"You're just waking up, don't worry," Layle said as he faded.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto woke up with a start. He yawned as he went over what he learned in his mindscape and mentally asked, _'Hey, guys?'_

_'Yeah?/Yes?'_ Layle and Amidatelion respectively responded.

_'What is it, Naruto?'_ Althea asked in concern.

_'Just checking to see if that wasn't a dream,'_ Naruto explained.

He took in his clothes and was surprised to see himself in his nightclothes. _'I guess someone changed me while I was out.'_ Just then his head started hurting like hell.

Just as he thought that, Inari opened the door to check on him. When he saw that Naruto was awake, he started jumping and shouting in joy.

"Ngh." Naruto grabbed his head. "Inari, could you keep it down? My head is killing me. Also, could you put a cup of tea out while I wash up?"

Inari immediately quieted and said, "Sorry, Naruto. Sure, I'll put some tea on the table." He left the room and went to set out the tea.

Naruto got up and headed to the bathroom to wash up. He splashed his face with water and looked at himself in the mirror. Sure enough, he still had the crystal on his right cheek. He took off his shirt and saw that the crystal on his breastplate was still there, too. He moved so that he could see his back and saw his third crystal was there as well. Sighing, he cut off his connection with Layle and the others so he could take a quick shower, after which he put on some new clothes and reestablished the connection.

_'You should get some new clothes,'_ Layle suggested. _'A shinobi shouldn't wear an orange jumpsuit.'_

_'Yeah, I think I should,'_ Naruto agreed as he headed downstairs. _'But most clothing stores in Konoha won't sell anything else. There is one, but I swore I'd never go there unless absolutely necessary. I guess this qualifies though. I just need to make sur that my custom order is durable.'_

He stopped the conversation as he entered the kitchen, surprising everyone in it. He noticed that Zabuza and Haku were there.

"I thought you'd be out for at least a few more days, Naruto," Sakura said. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Naruto said as he sat down in an empty chair at the table, which had the cup of tea Inari put out on it. Naruto grabbed the cup and drank some tea before saying, "I've always had a lot of stamina, so I recover quicker than most people. How long have I been out though?"

"Only two days," Kakashi replied with his nose in his book.

"Hey, dobe, what is that on your cheek?" Sasuke asked as he looked at it. "It looks like a crystal."

"That's because it is a crystal, teme," Naruto explained. "It's part of my Kekkei Genkai."

The shinobi were shocked at this. "I didn't know you had a Kekkei Genkai," Sakura said.

"Honestly, I didn't either until I woke it up. Apparently, my ancestors put a few Genjutsu on the genetics of it so that if someone was the last of the bloodline and they had no training for its abilities went and activated it, they would be forced to sleep so that they would get an explanation and the location of the clan's scrolls," Naruto lied expertly. _'Can't tell them the truth, I'd get thrown in the wacky shack.'_

Sasuke grunted. "Pretty clever. What is your bloodline?"

"This," Naruto said as he gave them a demonstration of his gravity powers by making the tea cup float. "Pure gravity manipulation."

"That's not much of a bloodline, if that's all you can do."

"I'm not done," Naruto explained as he took out a kunai and threw it at the cup, which he cloaked in a barrier at the last second. "I can also create barriers at will."

Sasuke frowned. "Okay, I'll admit that one is useful."

"There is another part, but I won't show it until I've read the clan scrolls, otherwise I could screw up," Naruto said.

"Anyway," Kakashi interrupted, "now that you're up, we can leave, seeing as the bridge was finished yesterday."

"What about Zabuza and Haku?" Sakura asked.

"We'll be coming with you since Kakashi and Naruto technically captured us," Zabuza said.

Later...

The shinobi stood at the completed bridge, facing the citizens of Wave.

"I guess this is goodbye," Tazuna said. "Really, thank you for everything."

"Don't worry, we were happy to help," Kakashi said with an eye smile.

"I hope you'll visit us sometime," Inari said, tearing up.

"We will," Naruto said.

"See ya!" With that, the shinobi started leaving. The citizens waved at them before someone spoke.

"That kid," Tazuna said, drawing their attention. "It's thanks to Naruto that we pulled through. He inspired Inari, who in turn inspired everyone else."

"Hey, now that the bridge is done, what are we gonna name it?" a villager asked.

"How about 'The Great Naruto Bridge?'" Tazuna asked, which was met with approval by many. "Then it's settled."

"Are you sure you want to name the bridge fishcake?" asked one of the villagers who didn't cheer.

"No, his name means maelstrom," Inari corrected him.

On the entire trip back, not much happened except Naruto testing and getting used to using his gravity powers. "Okay, quit showing off, dobe," Sasuke said when he saw Naruto using his powers to fly.

"I'm just getting used to using my bloodline," Naruto responded. "I don't want to cause any problems on a mission if I can't use it correctly."

Sasuke grumbled, but didn't argue after that. Sakura just looked at Naruto with a slightly envious look.

"What's wrong, Sakura?" Naruto asked when he saw the look.

"Nothing," Sakura said as she looked away.

"Didn't look like 'nothing' to me," Naruto said, frowning.

"I guess I just...feel like I'm useless," Sakura said after a minute of silence. "I mean, you have this gravity bloodline, Sasuke has the Sharingan, and I don't have anything to help."

"It's not easy having a bloodline, Sakura," Naruto said. "I have to be careful using mine. Otherwise, I could end up hurting people I don't want to see hurt."

"Still..." Sakura said sadly.

"Look, if you're worried about not being able to contribute to the team, maybe you should read up on medical jutsu," Naruto suggested. He then flipped so that he landed in front of the two Chunin guarding the gates of Konoha, surprising them.

Kakashi and the others landed not a second later. "Kakashi, you're slipping," one of the Chunin teased. "A Genin beat you to the gates."

"I wasn't really trying, Ao," Kakashi said, not looking up from his book. "Anyway, we need to sign our prisoners in."

"Whatever," Ao responded.

After they signed Zabuza and Haku in, they headed to the Hokage Tower. Nothing much happened apart from the villagers glaring at Naruto. Haku glared back at them While Zabuza wanted to unleash a bit of ki at them. "Naruto, why do they glare at you like that?" Zabuza asked, getting the three Genins' attention.

"Sorry, Zabuza, but I'm not allowed to talk about it," Naruto replied, which made Zabuza curious, but the former Mist nin dropped it.

When they got to the Hokage's office, Zabuza and Haku left their weapons with the secretary. The group entered the Hokage's office to find the third nearly in tears from the amount of paperwork on his desk.

"Still the same monotony, huh, old man?" Naruto greeted the Hokage, which earned him a bonk on the head from Sakura.

"Naruto, show Lord Hokage some respect!" she chastised him.

The Hokage chuckled and said, "It's alright, Sakura. Naruto and I have a deeper bond than leader and subordinate. But I am surprised to see Zabuza Momochi here."

"It turns out Tazuna lied about the mission, and it was revealed to be A-Rank, not the C-Rank we were given," Kakashi said before he gave his oral report.

"I see," Hiruzen said, leaning back. "Why are you here, Zabuza?"

"I would like to join the village, Lord Hokage."

"Very well, but you and Haku will have to be evaluated by Ibiki, then serve a month-long probation if you pass said evaluation." He called an ANBU, who escorted the two to the mentioed interrogater.

"Naruto, what happened to your cheek? It looks crystallized," Hiruzen asked. _'Please don't tell me you activated your bloodline.'_

"My bloodline was activated," Naruto said, making the Hokage sigh. "What's wrong?"

The Hokage responded, "I really hoped your bloodline didn't activate until you were at least 16, Naruto. The council will be angry about this, but there is nothing they can do about it, since the laws are on your side." He looked at Sasuke and Sakura and addressed them. "You two leave. I want as few people as possible to know about this."

The two dismissed Genin wanted to argue, but decided against it.

The wizened Hokage activated the security seals in the office and then opened a drawer in his desk. He pulled out a scroll and handed it to Naruto, saying, "This was written by your father shortly before he died. He wanted me to give it to you either when you activated your bloodline or when you turned 16, whichever came first."

Naruto took the scroll and opened it.

_'Naruto, I am truly sorry I will not be able to see you grow up. I can't say much, as the Nine-Tailed Fox Demon is approaching. I know the civilians will have a hard time accepting you, but remember, you are not the Fox, you are a human being, and on top of that a descendant of the legendary Crystal Bearer Layle. It may be hard to believe, but it's the truth. You will be his last living descendant after tonight. Never give up and always keep your friends close. Prove to the civilians you are not the Fox. Once again, I am sorry for placing this burden on you. I hope you can forgive me._

_Your father, Minato Namikaze, Fourth Hokage and Yellow Flash of Konoha.'_

Naruto looked down after he finished reading the scroll. "So my father is the same man who sealed the Nine-Tailed Fox within me." Kakashi and the Hokage hung their heads at how sad Naruto was. "But he was Hokage. How could a leader force any other parent to make a sacrifice like that? I understand his position, but I'm still going to slug him when I see him in the afterlife." This earned a chuckle from everyone seen and unseen.

"Is this all, old man?"

"Not quite," the Hokage said. "I have a feeling you're keeping something from me."

Naruto sighed. "It's just...I don't know how to explain it." He frowned. "Is there a way for you to enter my mindscape?"

Everyone was shocked at this.

"Yes, why?" the Hokage asked.

"It'll be easier to explain."

The Hokage sighed as well. "Alright. I assume you want Kakashi to join us?"

"Yes."

"Okay, let's see what you want to explain," the Hokage said as he stood up, went around his desk, and placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder as Kakashi grabbed the other shoulder.

Naruto then drew them into his mindscape.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto's Mindscape

The three shinobi woke up to find themselves in a sewer-like environment.

"My God, is this really your mindscape, Naruto?" Hiruzen asked as he looked around.

"Yeah, I need to remodel the place, huh?" Naruto half-joked. "Only thing is, I don't know how."

"I could help you with that," Takeshi said, alerting the older shinobi to his presence.

Kakashi and the Hokage turned around and saw Takeshi in all his glory. "What do you want?" Hirzen asked cautiously.

"I just want to tell you what really happened the night I attacked the village," Takeshi said before explaining.

"So, that's why," Kakashi said. He could tell the fox wasn't lying. "You made a foolish mistake."

"That about sums it up," Takeshi said, nodding.

"Is that all?"

"No, you also have us to talk to," Layle said as he, Althea, and Amidatelion faded into the shinobi's view.

To say the Hokage and Kakashi were shocked would be an understatement. "What the hell?" Kakashi shouted.

"Calm down, Kakashi-senei!" Naruto said before introducing them and the Bearers explaining themselves.

"I see," Hiruzen said. "Well, this is surprising. I didn't know that Naruto's bloodline came from Crystal Bearers."

"Honestly, I didn't know that would happen until after it did," Layle said, scratching his crystal.

"That's all I wanted to tell you," Naruto said as he and the shinobi left.

0o0o0o0o0

Real World

The three shinobi opened their eyes and found themselves back in the Hokage's office. The Hokage shook his head and sat down in the chair behind his desk. "Well that was...enlightening," he said. "Naruto, I would prefer it if you do not tell anyone about what we've talked about unless you absolutely trust him or her, understand?"

"Yes," Naruto replied. "One thing: When can I move into my house?"

"Just as soon as you sign the release forms," his grandfather figure said as he pulled out some documents. Naruto sat down, looked them over, then signed them. "Well, that settles it. You can gather your things and move in today. Kakashi, would you accompany him?"

"Of course, Lord Hokage," Kakashi replied, then left the office with Naruto.

The two nin soon exited the building, accidentally bumping into Hinata Hyuga, a blue-haired, white-eyed shy girl who was wearing a heavy beige jacket with a mesh shirt under it and dark blue shinobi pants.. "Oh, sorry, Hinata," Naruto said, whih caused her to faint, blushing profusely from the close contact with the boy she had a HUGE crush on. Naruto caught her before she hit the ground. "Er, Kakashi-sensei, what did I do?"

Kakashi just gave a knowing eye-smile and said, "That would be telling, now, wouldn't it?"

Naruto glared at his sensei before setting Hinata onto a bench and sat down next to her, waiting for her to wake up. Kakashi looked at them, thinking, _'They would make a good couple. I wonder what I could do to get them together.'_ He then began to plot about ways to do just that.

Hinata woke up at that point and sat up, not noticing Naruto beside her until he said, "You okay, Hinata?"

Hinata jumped, blushed, and said, "Eep! I-I'm fine, Naruto-kun."

"You sure?" Naruto asked, noticing her blush. He placed his hand on her forehead. "You don't have a fever, do you?"

Hinata's blush deepened as she thought, _'H-he's t-touching me! I-I'm going to f-faint if h-he k-keeps this up!'_ She took his hand off and said, "I-I'm fine, N-Naruto-kun. Y-you don't h-have to w-worry about m-me."

"You sure you're okay?" Naruto asked her, to which she nodded. "If you're sure. Just don't overdo it, okay?"

"O-okay."

"Well," Naruto said, standing up, "I have to go. Maybe we could get some ramen together sometime?"

Hinata blushed again and thought, 'I-I-Is h-he asking m-m-me out?' "I-I-I w-would l-like th-that."

Naruto smiled and said, "Cool. How about tomorrow at three?"

"S-s-sure. I-I'll see you tomorrow, N-Naruto-kun."

"Yeah, see ya, Hinata...-chan." He then left with Kakashi, leaving a profusely blushing Hinata, who was close to fainting again, behind him.

"Well, that was a surprise, Naruto," Kakashi said.

"Yeah, I don't know why I asked her out," Naruto replied. "Or why I added the suffix. It just felt right."

"Maybe you like her," Kakashi hinted.

Naruto frowned in thought. "Maybe," he said. "I'll think about it tonight."

The two walked in silence for the rest of the journey, each lost in their own thoughts. One thought they shared was that things were about to get interesting.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: Yes, Madara wasn't behind the Kyuubi attack in this. I have a reason for it, I just don't know it yet. You'll find out Naruto's wardrobe change in the next chapter. You know what to do. Review or I'll have Naruto go Hyper Mode and Gravity Spear you! Hyper Mode is what Layle goes into during the final boss fight of Crystal Bearers and Gravity Spear is the finishing move, just so you know.**

**Edit: Added some missing descriptions.**


	3. Changes and a Date

**A/N: Okay, this will be a bit of a challenge for me. I'm not that good with describing clothes, buildings, and such. Nor am I good with fight scenes. I'll do my best though. Anyway, here's the third chapter in Descendant of the Gravity Bearer! Enjoy!**

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto and Kakashi stood in front of a gate that lead to Naruto's inherited house. Though, 'house' would be an understatement. Instead of the simple, four-bedroom house Naruto had expected, he saw a beautiful three-story building with an overgrown side garden. The building looked pristine, as if people still lived in it. The garden was full of weeds and the grass was a bit high, but it still looked like a propety one could live in.

Naruto whistled. "Nice place. But I thought my dad was humble, from what I've heard."

Kakashi nodded and replied, "He was. Your mother was the one who designed the house. Unfortunately, your father had no say in how it looked apart from the training grounds in the backyard, a meditation room, and a larger library than what Kushina wanted. Everything else was Kushina's idea."

"So, basically, my dad was whipped," Naruto said with a chuckle.

Kakashi chuckled as well. "I guess you could say that." He reached inside his pocket and pulled out two identical keys. "Here," he said, handing them to Naruto. "These are the keys to the estate."

"Thanks, sensei," Naruto said, accepting both. "But why do you have them?"

"Your father gave them to me to hold on to until you were the legal owner of your inheritance. Anyways, I have to be going."

"Wait, you're not gonna stick around?"

"No," Kakashi said. "I have things to do. Oh, there won't be any training or missions tomorrow. I forgot to tell you earlier."

"That doesn't have anything to do with my plans tomorrow, does it?" Naruto said, narrowing his eyes.

Kakashi merely eye-smiled and said, "Maybe, maybe not. I just think you guys need a break. Later." At that Kakashi vanished in a poof of smoke.

Grumbling, Naruto unlocked the gate and walked in, relocking it afterwards. He did the same with the front door and examined the house thoroughly. The furniture was well-kept, there wasn't even a speck of dust on anything, and the lights, water, and air-conditioning worked. Naruto frowned when he discovered the last part. _'Did the old man turn everything back on? Meh, probably. I didn't even talk to him about that yet.'_

He opened the fridge, but nothing was in there, as he expected. _'I'll have to go shopping for food. Oh, well that means more ramen!'_

_'No, you will eat properly from now on, Naruto,'_ Althea chastised him.

_'But-'_ Naruto started to protest.

_'No arguing, young man!'_ Althea ordered.

_'*sigh*, fine,'_ Naruto reluctantly agreed, but then he smiled.

_'What is it?'_ Layle asked his descendant.

_'It's just...listening to Althea tell me what to eat kinda made me realize what I've been missing,'_ Naruto explained. _'I've been an orphan for so long, so I've never known what it's like to have a family. It feels...good.'_

Everyone smiled at Naruto's admission, though no one could see Amidatelion's smile.

After Naruto did his inventory check, he headed for the library to get a better look at it. When he realized how big it actually was, his jaw dropped. The library took a fourth of the space there was on the first floor. Scrolls detailing jutsu, seals, chakra control exercises, taijutsu, and books of history lined its walls. The jutsu were organized according to their elements, then further organized by rank. Medical jutsu were after the elemental jutsu, followed by non-elemental jutsu. The section for taijutsu styles was organizd in the same way, as was the section for seals. The history books were catagorized by order of events, then legends and finally the clan's history. Finally, to the right of the entrance, were scrolls detailing the clan's Kekkei Genkai techiques and the taijutsu styles that involve said Kekkei Genkai.

"WHOA!" Naruto shouted, looking at the scrolls. "That's a big library! Kakashi-sensei wasn't kidding! There's gotta be at least two thousand scrolls and books here total!"

_'That is the best estimate,'_ Layle said, seeing everything through Naruto's eyes.

"It's gonna take years to learn all these, let alone master them!"

_'We could train in your mindscape,'_ Takeshi said. _'But you may want to do the remodeling first. I won't be able to help otherwise.'_

_'How can I learn all these quicker in my mindscape?'_

_'Time flows differently in your mindscape,'_ Takeshi explained. _'Hours could pass in here and it would only be a few minutes outside your mindscape. But we shouldn't do that, at least for your clan's taijutsu styles. You need the physical training as well. Though you could use Shadow Clones to help learn the theory, and then spar against them.'_

_'Huh? How can Shadow Clones help?'_ Naruto asked, making Takeshi do the fox version of a facevault.

_'You mean you didn't know that you learn everything your clones do?'_ Takeshi practically shouted.

_'No, I didn't know that.'_

_'Well, now you do,'_ Takeshi grumbled.

_'I'll start on this after I get everything I need,'_ Naruto thought, then made a few Shadow Clones and gave them specific instructions on what to get. _'I also need to go to that store to get a new set of clothes after I come up with what I want.'_ Then it hit him. _'Yeah, that'll work.'_ He found a blank scroll, sat down, and drew the clothes he wanted, detailing everything and leaving notes on the scroll. Soon, he was finished. _'Now all I need to do is go to thart store.'_

With that thought, he left, leaving behind a clone to open the gate for the rest of the clones when they returned.

0o0o0o0o0

Later...

Naruto walked in to The Shinobi's Path, the only weapon and clothing store for ninja run that was actually run by a ninja. The owners and employees never hated Naruto for his burden, and instead followed Minato's last wish, thinking of him as a hero. Naruto, grateful to them, shopped only at their store for weapons, but never bought any clothes. But that would change today.

The clerk looked up, saw Naruto, and smiled warmly. "Ah, Naruto," she said. "What can I do for you?"

"Hey, Okichi. I need eight sets of a special order done," Naruto said as he handed her the scroll. The clerk opened the scroll and looked over it, her eyebrows raised. After going through it, she nodded.

"Okay, the first should be done in a few hours," she said, handing it to another employee, who ran into the back room. "If you want, you could wait here."

"I guess," Naruto said. While he waited, Naruto looked at the various clothes and weapons.

About ten minutes until the first set was expected to be done, the bell rang as another person enterred the store. Naruto looked to see who it was, and felt his heart hit his ribcage when he saw it was Hinata. "Hinata, what are you doing here?"

Hinata jumped slightly and, blushing, turned around to see Naruto. "Er, well, I-I'm restocking my k-kunai and shuriken. B-but what are y-you doing h-here, N-Naruto-kun?"

"I'm waiting on a special order to be done."

"Which is now finished ahead of schedule!" Okichi said as she handed Naruto the set of clothes, making the Genin jump. "The changing room is over there," she said as she pointed to the rooms.

"Er, thanks," Naruto said. "How much do I owe you?"

"You'll have to wait for when the other seven sets are done," Okichi said with a teasing smirk as she ruffled his hair.

Naruto frowned for a second, then headed to the dressing rooms to change, grumbling at Okichi's actions. _'She can be so annoying!'_

Hinata looked at Okichi. "H-how do you kn-know N-Naruto-kun?"

Okichi smiled sadly. "I've known him for years. My father and I found him hiding in the park during winter when he was four. My father was furious when Naruto said the orphanage kicked him out." She shuddered at the memory. "We took him to Hokage-sama, who unfortunately wasn't able to convince the civilian council to let father adopt him. Instead, Naruto's been living in an apartment provided by Hokage-sama." She gained a sad look. "He's been though a lot, all for something he had no control over." Her eyes widened at her slip and she immediately closed her mouth.

"I-Is something wrong?" Hinata asked.

"I'm not allowed to talk about it," Okichi said. "Please don't press the issue." She then changed the subject. "So, I've heard a few rumors about you and Naruto, Hinata."

Hinata blushed badly. "I-I d-d-don't kn-know w-what y-y-you m-m-mean."

"Don't deny it, Hinata. I can tell you have it bad for him," Okichi said, giggling.

Hinata pressed her fingers together. "I-Is it th-th-that o-o-obvious?" she whispered.

"Not really," Okichi lied to help her. "But listen. Naruto doesn't know what it means to care about someone like how you care about him. You'll have to be patient, but I think you two would make a great couple. Your kids would look adorable."

Hinata blushed again, this time nearly fainting at the thought of having Naruto's children.

"Hinata, are you okay?" Naruto asked as he reappeared in his new clothes and saw Hinata's face.

Hinata turned to look, and promptly fainted with an extremely red face, a slight nosebleed, and only one thought. _'He- OH MY KAMI, HE'S HOT!'_ Naruto had replaced his orange jacket with a black version of Layle's jacket. On the back were three symbols forming a triangle. The red swirl he had on his previous jacket was near the base of his neck, the Clavat symbol in white near his left hip, and the Lilty symbol in white as well near his right. He was wearing a standard dark blue ninja shirt under his jacket, black ninja slacks, and black ninja sandals.

Naruto rushed up to Hinata and caught her before she hit the floor. "Hinata? What happened, Okichi?"

Okichi just smirked. "Maybe it was your new look, Naruto."

"Huh?"

Okichi giggled. "One day, you will understand what I mean. But not today, cause I'm not saying anything."

"Why not?"

"Cause it's more fun that way!"

Hinata woke up with a sleepy moan. "Hinata, are you okay?" Naruto asked her.

"I-I'm fine, Naruto-kun."

"What made you faint?"

"Y-you l-look h-h-hot," Hinata said in a half-asleep daze, then blushed as she realized what she said and who she said it to. Close to fainting again, she pressed her fingers together as she looked away from Naruto.

Naruto was blushing badly as well. "Y-you think I look hot?"

Hinata nodded, not trusting her voice. Naruto blushed more at her confirmation.

"I- well-" Naruto stuttered.

"Okay, you two, this is a store, not a couples resturant," Okichi said, attempting to dissolve the tension.

It worked somewhat. The two Genin broke apart, but didn't look at each other.

"I-I'll see you tomorrow, Hinata. How about we meet at Ichiraku's," Naruto said, leaving.

"O-o-okay," Hinata said, moving to buy her replacement weapons.

Okichi just looked at the two in turn, then mentally sighed. _'That went well,'_ she thought sarcastically. _'I hope they get past this.'_ She ringed up Hinata's purchases and watched the Hyuga leave. _'Naruto, if only you knew how she feels about you. I don't want you to be lonely. You're like a brother to me.'_ She then realized what Naruto had said before he left. _'Wait, they're going on a date tomorrow?'_ She smirked. _'Well, maybe I could do something to help them...'_ And so she began to plot.

0o0o0o0o0

Next day...

Sakura and Sasuke waited at the bridge that became their normal meeting spot, waiting for Kakashi and Naruto.

"Naruto's never this late," Sakura said, looking around. "It's been two hours since the assigned meeting time, but only Kakashi-sensei is this late.

"You're right," Sasuke said. "But he probably lost track of time reading his clan scrolls."

"Maybe, but even then, he shouldn't be this late."

"Who wouldn't be this late?" a voice said, and the two Genin turned to see the blond in question. Their jaws dropped as they took in his clothes.

"Naruto? Is that you? Sakura asked, shocked to see her teammate's wardrobe change.

"Yeah," Naruto said, walking by.

"Wait, where are you going?" Sasuke demanded. "Kakashi-sensei's gonna be here any second."

"You called?" Kakashi joked as he appeared.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Sakura yelled at him, making everyone wince at how loud she was.

"I know," Kakashi said, rolling his visible eye, which annoyed Sakura. "Anyway, I forgot to mention yesterday that you have today off."

sakura and Sasuke facevaulted. "YOU FORGOT?" they yelled at him.

"Yeah, I did. Sorry."

Sakura grumbled at her sesnsei as Sasuke said, "Well, that was a waste of time. See ya." He started to leave.

Sakura turned to Sasuke and said, "Sasuke-kun, maybe we could-"

"No, Sakura," Sasuke turned her down before she finished.

"Oh..." Sakura said, her eyes downcast.

"Oh, Sakura," Naruto said, getting her attention. "Here." He handed her some scrolls on medical jutsu he took from his library.

Sakura raised her eyebrows when she saw their contents. "Medical jutsu? Where did you get these?"

"That is a secret," Naruto said. "But don't worry, I didn't steal them."

"You better not have," Sakura threatened.

Naruto looked at the sun's position and yelped. "Crap! I'm gonna be late!" He ran off. "See ya later!" he called back.

Sakura blinked and turned to Kakashi. "What was that about?"

Kakashi eye-smiled and said, "You didn't hear it from me, and I don't want you spreading this around, but he's got a date with Hinata today."

"WHAT?" Sakura yelled in shock. "Hinata? When did he ask her out?"

"Not telling," Kakashi said before disappearing in a poof of smoke.

Sakura stood in thought for a few seconds, then ran off, determined to see what would happen on the date.

0o0o0o0o0

With Hinata...

Hinata stood in front of Ichiraku's in a lavender blouse, blue shorts, and her shinobi sandals, waiting for Naruto. _'M-maybe he won't c-come. M-Maybe I s-scared him off y-yesterday.'_ She heard someone call her name and turned to see the blond in question. She blushed as she thought, _'H-h-he still l-l-looks hot!'_

"Hey, Hinata, sorry I'm late! I had an errand to run, and I didn't think it would take as long as it did! I'm really sorry!" Naruto said, apologising.

"I-it's okay," Hinata said. She started to walk into Ichiraku's when Naruto grabbed her hand and turned her around.

"We're not eating at Ichiraku's, Hinata," Naruto said before he lead her along for a few minutes until they reached a resturant. "Ah, here we are."

Hinata looked at the resturant and felt her jaw drop. "N-Naruto-kun, th-this is the s-second most e-expensive r-resturant in K-Konoha. I-I can't let you spend money on m-me h-here." She really didn't want Naruto to go broke just because he was taking her on a date. "W-we sh-should go s-somewhere e-else."

Naruto shook his head. "It's fine, Hinata. I can afford it."

"E-even so, th-this is t-too expensive, e-especially f-f-for a f-f-f-irst d-d-d-date." She blushed at the last part.

Naruto blushed as well. "Really, it's fine."

"N-no, I-I c-can't a-accept th-this. P-please, c-can't w-we go s-somewhere e-else?" She looked at him with puppy eyes, making him sweat a bit.

Naruto sighed after a second and said, "Okay, if it's that important to you. How about you decide?"

In Naruto's mindscape, Layle chuckled at his descendant's predicament and said, "Naruto's so whipped, and they aren't even dating."

Althea crossed her arms and asked, "Whipped, Layle?"

Layle sweatdropped and stuttered, "Er...well..."

"Be quiet, Layle," Althea said, turning her attention back outside.

"Yes, dear," Layle said as he hung his head.

Takeshi chuckled and thought, _'Now who's whipped?'_

Back in the real world, Hinata stopped at a more suitable resturant for a first date. "H-how about h-here, Naruto-kun?" The resturant was Dendai Don's, which served all kinds of food, from hamburgers to ramen, and everything in between.

Naruto looked at the resturant and nodded, saying, "Sure. Dendai Don's is a good place."

The two walked in and saw that not a lot of people were there. _'Must be a slow day,'_ Naruto thought as a waiter walked up.

The waiter looked at Naruto like he was scum on his boots and said, "I'm sorry, but we're booked for the day. I'm afraid you'll have to go somewhere else."

Naruto frowned and said, "What do you mean you're booked? This place isn't even half-full."

"Excuse me," a voice said, "but what were you saying, Rai?" The three turned to see the owner, Dendai Don himself, coming towards them in chef's clothes with a frowm on his face. Rai, the waiter, began to sweat a little.

"Er, nothing, Dendai, sir," Rai tried to falsely explain.

"Liar," Dendai said. "I heard what you told them. One more mess up like that and you can consider yourself fired. Understand?"

"Y-yes, sir," Rai said.

"Good. Now show our guests to their seats," Dendai said.

"Yes, sir," Rai said, and showed Naruto and Hinata to a small booth away from everyone else. He gave them menus and said, "Please wait one moment. Your server will be here to take your orders soon." With that, Rai left after shooting a hidden glare at Naruto.

"W-what was th-that about, N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked, trying to figure out why Rai seemed to hate him.

Naruto hesitated before he said, "It's nothing, Hinata. Don't worry about it."

Hinata looked in his eyes and saw that he was lying. 'W-Why would h-he l-lie? D-Does he th-think he c-can't trust me?' Hinata looked downcast until Naruto spoke up.

"What are you going to order?"

Hinata jumped slightly and looked at her menu. "W-well, I-I think I-I'll order a m-medium rare s-steak with fries and a p-potato. W-What about y-you, Naruto-kun?"

"I think I'll get the same," Naruto said.

At that point, the server came and said, "Hi, I'm Lyn and I'll be your server today. What can I get you?" She wrote down the Genins' orders as they said them and then she asked, "Okay, what would you like to drink?"

"S-some tea w-would be okay," Hinata said.

"And you, sir?" Lyn asked, narrowing her eyes fractionally.

"Some tea as well," Naruto said.

"Got it," Lyn said, writing down both orders. "I'll be back shortly with your drinks." She left to get their drinks and to take their orders to Dendai Don.

"So, Hinata," Naruto began, "how about you tell me more about yourself, and I'll do the same?"

Hinata nodded shyly and said, "O-okay."

She then started telling him about herself, shyly at first but became more confident as she talked. Naruto listened intently as she talked, encouraging her when she fell silent or hesitated. He learned that her favorite foods were zenzai and cinnamon buns, and her least favorite food was shellfish. Her hobbies were flower pressing, cooking, and trying to improve her clan's techniques. When Naruto asked why about the latter, she said the clan's taijutsu style didn't seem to work with her. She said part of her dream was to unite her clan, but refused to say what the other part was, instead blushing furiously when Naruto tried to get her to tell him.

While she talked, Lyn arrived with their drinks and told them their food would be done soon, to which they nodded.

Hinata finished soon after that and feel into silence, blushing slightly from opening up to her crush so much.

Naruto smiled and thanked her, which made her blush more, then started telling her about himself as well. Hinata listened intently, making a mental note when Naruto mentioned his like for sweets. She encouraged him as well, and shyly prodded for details. She already knew his favorite food was ramen, but shyly offered to cook for him sometimes when he said his least favorite foods were vegetables. They both blushed badly, but managed to keep talking. Naruto said his hobbies were pranking and gardening, the latter of which surprising Hinata. He then restated his dream of becoming the greatest Hokage, to which she said something that made him blush.

"I-I know y-you will b-be, N-N-Naruto-kun." Hinata blushed at her words.

Naruto, after toning down his blush, smiled gently and said, "Thanks, Hinata. I'm glad that I have some people to support me."

Hinata blushed more and smiled at him.

Their food arrived at that point. They thanked Lyn, said a brief prayer of thanks, and started eating. They ate in silence until Hinata asked Naruto something that had been bothering her. "Um, N-Naruto-kun? W-What is that blue object on your right cheek?"

Naruto scratched his crystal. "Er...well..." Naruto stammered before he looked around for eavesdroppers. There were none. He leaned in close and whispered, "Can you keep a secret?" Hinata nodded, confused. "This crystal identifies me for who I am, and who my ancestors were. I have another on my breastplate, and one on my back along the spine."

"What do you mean, 'who my ancestors were'?" Hinata asked, confused.

"My ancestors were the Crystal Bearers Layle and his wife Althea Sol Alfitaria," Naruto explained, shocking Hinata. "This crystal on my cheek shows that Layle's powers over gravity have been passed on to me. The crystal on my breastplate shows that Althea's powers over barriers have been passed to me as well."

"Y-You're the l-last living d-descndant of the L-Layle and Althea S-Sol A-Alfitaria?" Hinata whispered in shock. "Y-you're r-royalty, N-Naruto-k-kun."

"No, I'm not," Naruto denied. "The Lilty Kingdom has faded, Hinata. I'm no more royal than any of the civilians. And I don't want any special treatment because of my lineage. That's why I'm telling you. I know you won't treat me any different because of it. Please, Hinata, don't tell anyone."

"I-I won't, N-Naruto-kun," Hinata promised. "But b-by definition, y-you are r-royalty. You c-can ask L-Lord Hokage if y-you're not s-sure."

"I guess I can ask him," Naruto said.

"N-Naruto-kun? C-Can I s-see your p-powers over g-gravity and b-barriers?"

"Not here, Hinata," Naruto said, glancing around to check for eavesdroppers again, and finding none. "I'll show you if you want to see them, but somewhere with no one around. Okay?" He started eating again.

"O-Okay, Naruto-kun," Hinata said as she started eating again, eager to see his powers.

After they were finished, Lyn came by, took their empty plates, and gave them the check. Naruto paid the full 1,500 ryo bill and left Lyn a tip of 750 ryo. The two Genin left Dendai Don's and headed to the training fields so Naruto could show Hinata his powers. They arrived at the field to find it deserted. Hinata looked at the sun's position to check the time and gasped.

"What's wrong?" Naruto asked.

"M-my team w-will b-be h-h-here s-s-soon!" Hinata explained quickly. "I-I f-forgot we have a meeting today! Y-You have to l-leave! I-I'll be in trouble with K-Kurenai-sensei for forgetting, a-and I don't w-want you i-in t-trouble e-either!"

"Too late," Naruto said, looking behind him.

Hinata turned around to see her team standing there. Kurenai Yuhi, a woman in her twenties with long and slightly curly black hair, red eyes wearing a battle dress that looked like battle wrappings, was looking at the two Genin in front of her with mild amusement, slight annoyance, and some confusion on her face. Shino Aburame, a boy with spiky black hair who always hid his eyes behind sunglasses and wore a grey coat that covered the lower half of his face, had his eyebrows raised. Kiba Inuzuka, a boy with spiky brown hair, brown eyes, and red fang tattoos on his cheeks wearing a grey jacket with the hood up, was glaring at Naruto, wanting to kill him. Akamaru, Kiba's little white-haired dog that usually rode on his master's head, looked like he was smirking.

"Well, Hinata, this is a surprise," Kurenai said, not recognizing Naruto in his new outfit. "I thought you liked Naruto. Who's this?"

Naruto just raised his eyebrows and said, "I am Naruto."

Kiba and Kurenai looked shocked or a second before Kiba yelled, "LIAR! Naruto wears an orange jumpsuit! Who the hell are you?"

"Kiba, use your nose and your brain," Naruto said. "My last mission made me start to take my ninja career seriously."

Kiba just scoffed. "You really think I'm gonna believe that? You don't know anything about Naruto, do you?"

"I am Naruto," Naruto restated, starting to get annoyed with the Inuzuka.

"THAT'S IT! You're going down, faker!" Kiba said as he shot at Naruto.

Naruto just jumped back until he was a safe distance from the others, making Kiba go after him.

Kurenai was about to yell at Kiba before Naruto looked at her and gave her a silent message. _'I'll deal with him.'_

Kiba shouted "Tunneling Fang!" as he spun his body and turned into a grey sideways tornado aimed at Naruto. Naruto waited until he was ten feet away before his right hand made a transluscent light-blue sphere with cubes fading into and out of existance in a circle around the sphere. A transluscent light-blue half-sphere surrouded Naruto as Kiba closed in. The Inuzuka hit the barrier, fought it for a few seconds, then was thrown back as Naruto expanded it.

Kiba landed on the ground in a heap and said, "What the...?" He looked at who he believed was a fake Naruto to see the barrier around him and the sphere in his hand. "Okay, that proves you're not Naruto. He can't do anything like that."

Naruto just shook his head as he dropped the barrier. "You idiot. You're ignoring your nose. Bad idea."

Kiba growled and shot at him again, this time attempting to punch him. Naruto encased his hand in blue-and-purple energy and waited until he was in striking distance. Kiba however, was cautious, and dodged the punch and landed a punch of his own, sending Naruto flying back a few feet. But that was what Naruto wanted, as Kiba was surrounded by the same energy surrounding Naruto's hand.

"Wha-?" Kiba managed to say before he was yanked towards Naruto, who spun in midair. Kiba flew forward and up in a quarter-circle before the energy that was surrounding him vanished, making the unprepared boy fly into a tree trunk with a loud WHAM! The Inuzuka slid down the tree and landed on the ground in a heap as Team 8 ran over to check on him.

Kurenai checked her student and said, "Well, he's got a few bruises, but that's it. Thank you for not doing anything worse, Naruto."

"Well, I didn't want to do anything else. But I want to know why he didn't believe me," Naruto responded.

"That is most likely because he is very protective of Hinata, Naruto," Shino said, adjusting his sunglasses. "He thinks of her as a sister, as do I, and neither of us want her to be taken advantage of. He threw out common sense when he did not recognize you."

"Well, that's just stupid," Naruto said. "Then again, I can't talk, since I hardly used common sense before."

"Ugh," Kiba groaned as he woke up. The he opened his eyes and saw Naruto. "Why you-!" He moved to attack Naruto but was stopped by Hinata.

"Don't you hurt Naruto-kun!" she said as she used a Gentle Fist strike to disable him. Her eyes widened when she realized what she did, as did everyone else's. She gasped and her hands flew to her mouth in shock.

"O-owww," Kiba groaned, holding his stomach. "H-Hinata, w-what are you doing?"

"Kiba, calm down. Naruto is not an imposter," Kurenai said.

"Huh? He's not?" Kiba sniffed, and recognized Naruto's scent. "You're right. Wait, that means-! Oh crap, I'm sorry, Naruto!" Kiba said, feeling guilty.

"Just don't do it again, Kiba," Naruto said.

"Naruto-kun, c-could I t-talk to you f-for a s-second? P-Privately?" Hinata asked while blushing, shocking her team.

"Sure," Naruto said, and led her far enough away so her team couldn't hear them, but could see them. "What is it?"

"Ummm... W-well, I-I w-wanted t-to a-ask you i-if y-you're free th-th-this F-F-Friday," Hinata said, blushing profusely. "I-I d-don't h-have a t-team m-meeting, and w-wanted to kn-know i-if y-y-you wou-would li-like to-to g-go ou-out th-th-then?"

"Er, I'll have to check with Kakashi-sensei, but yeah, I'd like to go out again," Naruto said, blushing as well.

Hinata nearly fainted in joy. She had just gone on a date with Naruto, and here he was saying he would like to go out again! Her head swam, and she nearly collapsed, if not for Naruto catching her.

"Whoa, you okay, Hinata?" Naruto asked in concern, his eyes peering into hers. _'Whoa. Her eyes are just... Wow. Why didn't I notice that before?'_

_'H-His eyes...they're s-so...deep,'_ Hinata thought as her heart hammered against her chest. "Y-Yes, I-I think so," she said as she straightened up.

Naruto wasn't too sure, but trusted her judgement and let go. "Okay, but if you feel dizzy, you should sit down, okay?"

"Okay."

Naruto hesitated, then said, "I-I'll see if I'm free on Friday, and let you know."

"S-Sure," Hinata said, moving to rejoin her team.

"H-Hinata?" Naruto asked shyly, and the Hyuga turned around. He hesitated, and then gently and shyly grabbed her chin.

"N-Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked, shocked, before her lips shyly met his. Her eyes widened as she blushed a deep crimson before she closed them, feeling that her heart was about to burst.

Naruto pulled away, blushing just as deeply as Hinata, and said, "I-I'll see you later, Hinata...-chan." He then left, making sure that the rest of Team 8 couldn't see any more of his blush than they had.

Hinata just stood there in shock before slowly bringing a shaking hand to her lips, still blushing. _'H-H-He j-j-j-just k-k-ki-kissed m-m-m-me!'_ Tears of joy started to fall from her eyes as she collapsed to her knees, hardly believing what just happened. Her heart kept hammering against her chest as she went through what happened over and over before her mind couldn't take it anymore, and she fainted with a blissful smile on her face.

Her team just stood there jaws dropped. Naruto just kissed Hinata, and only after one date! They could hardly believe that she was getting the man she set her sights on so soon! Kiba and Shino made mental vows to make sure to beat Naruto to a pulp if he hurt her, while Kurenai made a vow to torture him if he did the same. They snapped out of their dazes as they saw Hinata faint and rushed to her, knowing that things were getting really interesting.

Naruto shuddered and thought, _'Why do I have the feeling that I'd be in a lot of pain if I hurt Hinata?'_

0o0o0o0o0

Sakura, who had watched Naruto and Hinata throughout the whole date, was thinking the same thing as Team 8, but also thinking this was a real juicy story she had. She didn't hear what Naruto said about his lineage in Dendai Don's, nor did she hear Hinata ask Naruto out on another date, but she didn't care! She had something she could tease her teammate about for a long time! Sakura chuckled at the thought of Naruto's reaction when he finds out she knows about his first real kiss.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto was walking down the street, thinking. He didn't know why he kissed Hinata. He just did. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that she asked him out on another date. Or something like that. Yeah, that had to be it.

An ANBU dropped in front of him and said, "Naruto Uzumaki, the council has requested your pressence."

Naruto snapped out of his daze and said, "When?"

"Immediately. You were expected to be there ten minutes ago, but I could not find you due to your wardrobe change." The ANBU placed his hand on Naruto's shoulder and shunshined to the doors of the council room, bringing Naruto with him. He took his hand off and left immediately.

Naruto knocked on the doors, and entered after he was told to. He saw that all the clan heads were there as well as the civilian council, the latter of which glaring at him. Hiruzen smiled briefly at Naruto, who nodded.

"May I ask why I have been summoned?" Naruto asked.

"Don't give us that," a civilian councilman barked at him. "You were supposed to be here ten minutes ago."

"Sorry for the delay. The ANBU sent to find me was expecting to see me wearing an orange jumpsuit. Kind of hard to find someone when they don't wear what they usually do."

"In any case, you're here now," Hiruzen said. "Now what is the matter about?"

Homura, an elder on the council, stood up and said, "We have received word from Naruto's teammate, Sasuke Uchiha, that Naruto apparently has a bloodline. We would like to see proof of such claims."

Naruto sighed and pulled out a kunai. He tossed it into the air and grabbed it with his gravity powers, making it float in midair. "Is that enough proof?"

Kotaru, another elder, said, "That could be a trick. I say-"

"No, it is not," Hiashi Hyuga, Hinata's father and head of the Hyuga clan, said, his Byakugan active. "This is indeed a bloodline. A very ancient one, in fact."

"What do you know about it, Hiashi-sama?" Danzo, a third elder, asked curiously.

"This bloodline stems from before the age of shinobi," Hiashi explained. "The first person to carry the bloodline was someone we all have heard about, the Crystal Bearer Layle."

The rest of the council minus Shikaku Nara was shocked. "L-Layle?" Kotaru asked. "This boy is a descendant of Layle?"

"He is," Hiruzen said. "That also makes him the last living descendant of Althea Sol Afitaria as well. And he has inherited her bloodline as well."

Daiki Haruno, Sakura's father, stood up and said, "Naruto-sama, I would like to arrange a marriage contract between you and my daughter-"

"No, I will not marry anyone who loves me only for my title," Naruto interrupted him. "You can forget about your contract."

Daiki sat down, annoyed. He thought Naruto liked his daughter, and would jump at the chance to be with her.

"Regardless, Naruto-san, you will have to go through the Clan Restoration Act," Homura said, smirking. "If you do not find at least two wives by the time you are a Chunin, we, the council, will be able to select for you."

Naruto frowned for a second before asking, "May I see the wording of the Clan Restoration Act, so I can be sure that that's true?"

Hiruzen had an ABNU bring a lawbook, and gave it to Naruto, telling him which section to turn to. Naruto turned to the section on the CRA and read it, frowning. As he read more, he started smirking, which made the civilian coucil worried while the shinobi council wonder what was going through his head. Then Naruto started chuckling, making the shinobi side think he found a loophole, which he did.

"What is so funny, Naruto-san?" Kotaru asked.

"You can't force me to take multiple wives," Naruto said. "The CRA states that _'if only three or fewer males remain of a clan, and no females of said clan remain, they may take more than one wive, under the approval of the current Hokage. If they decide to take multiple wives, they may let the current Hokage decide for them, after they state how many wives they will take. Only a Hokage will be able to decide the wives in this case, with no exceptions.'_ They _may_, not _are required._ I decide for myself if I want more than one wife, and if I choose to have more than one, only the _Hokage_ may choose them if I don't want to choose them. You, the council, can't force me to do anything." He handed the lawbook back to Hiruzen, who checked to see if Naruto was right.

Hiruzen chuckled and said, "Naruto is indeed correct. That is what is stated in the CRA. He and I will discuss this later.

The civilian council was shocked while the shinobi council was smirking.

"Now, as this matter is ended, is there anything else that concerns Naruto?" The council shook their heads. "Then you are dismissed."

The entire council filed out, save for Hiashi, Hiruzen, and Naruto. Hiashi turned to Naruto. "Naruto-san, I would like to speak with you for a moment, if you can spare the time."

Naruto responded, "Sure. What is it?"

"I would like to discuss forming a marriage contract between yourself and my daughter Hinata. She does not care for social status, but would instead love a man for who he is rather than his title. All I ask is that you get to know her better before you make a decision."

Naruto chuckled nervously and said, "Well, I've...already gone out on a date with her."

"I already know that you had asked her on a date, but I did not know it was today."

Naruto started to get more nervous now. "Er...well...I kinda also...kissed her?" He tensed, waiting for the explosion.

Hiashi just raised an eyebrow, ignoring the fatherly anger that rose up in him. "Then you are willing to create a marriage contract between the two of you?"

"Er...I...I don't know, Hiashi-san," Naruto said, extremely uncomfortable. "I...I don't really know how I feel about her. If you would allow me time to sort out my feelings, I would appreciate it."

"That is acceptable," Hiashi said, nodding. "I can give you one month, but not any longer."

"Why one month?" Hiruzen asked.

"Because the Hyuga elder council is attempting to marry her off to other clans not from this village. They are quite adamant about it."

Naruto sighed. "I guess I don't have a choice. Alright, I'll let you know in a month."

Hiashi bowed slightly. "Thank you. I hope you won't regret whatever decision you come to." With that, he left.

"Naruto, I hope you know what you are doing," Hiruzen said. "Hiashi-"

"Is only trying to protect Hinata," Naruto finished. "I can tell he doesn't want her to be miserable. Nor does he want her to be move away from Konoha. I think that's why he jumped at the chance when he learned about my bloodline."

"That may be, but he may make the contract so that it benefits him more," Hiruzen said.

"Maybe," Naruto said, smirking, "but he doesn't know that I have someone who can deal with that." He touched his index and middle fingers to his temple to indicate.

Hiruzen nodded, smirking. "Is there something else you wish to discuss, besides the CRA?"

"One thing. When I told Hinata about my heritage, she said that I'm royalty. But the Lilty Kingdom has faded. Am I considered royalty regardless?"

Hiruzen leaned back, thinking about how to word it. "Well, you have the blood of a royal family running through your veins. That in itself would make you royalty, regardless of whether the kingdom stills exists or not. But that does not mean you are entitled to every aspect that a Daimyo is entitled to. But be warned Naruto, when people find out about your lineage, many Daimyos will want you to marry their daughters. Some will even try to bribe you into it. But you don't have to worry about our Daimyo. He will most likely send his daughter here only for her to get to know you, and see if you would marry her then. He would rather see his daughter happy than miserable."

"You said will," Naruto said, frowning. "Does that mean he already knows?"

"Unfortunately, yes," Hiruzen said. "I'm sorry, but he told me to tell him if anyone with Namikaze blood was alive after Takeshi's forced attack."

Naruto sighed and said, "What a drag."

A few miles away, a certain lazy ninja sneezed.

Hiruzen chuckled. "Now Naruto, what are you going to do about the CRA?"

"I don't know old man," Naruto said. "I would prefer to have only one wife, but I may fall for multiple women. I know that hardly happens outside of perverted romance novels-" At this, a certain white-haired Sannin violently sneezed. "-but that doesn't mean it's impossible. I don't know what to decide."

"Maybe you should wait until you're of legal marrying age to decide," Hiruzen suggested.

Naruto thought for a second, then nodded. "Yeah, I think I'll do that." He stood up. "See ya, old man."

"Take care, Naruto. I just hope that when the village hears about your bloodline, it doesn't cause too much paperwork."

"Have you ever tried using Shadow Clones?" Naruto asked, stopping in front of the doors. "They were a real help with fixing up my house. I know I'll use them when I'm Hokage."

Hiruzen just sat there before he hit his head on the table muttering, "Stupid, stupid, stupid. Why didn't I ever think of that?"

Naruto just chuckled and left. Hiruzen shunshined to his office, created a few Shadow Clones, and finished his paperwork five times faster.

0o0o0o0o0

Next day...

Naruto was headed to the meeting point for his team, thinking. Fo some reason, his thoughts kept drifting back to Hinata, though he was trying not to think about her at the moment. It wasn't helping that Takeshi kept sending him images of when he kissed the pale-eyed girl. He thought about his training in his mindscape the day before, after he changed it to a forest after Takeshi explained how. Amidatelion decided to teach him a few tier one spells, though he only learned Cure, Gravity, Zero Gravity, Barrier, and Aero, though he quickly mastered Gravity and Zero Gravity due to his natural affinity for gravity. Barrier and Aero were not far behind, but Cure he needed a lot of work on. Amidatelion also taught him how to summon tamed Zus and Behemoths, though he only could summon small ones so far. He also trained in the Gravity Fist taijutsu style outside of his mindscape using clones, but was far from perfecting it since the scroll detailing it was as big as his arm. But at least he was making progress.

He arrived before his teammates and decided to work on his control of gravity by making the water float and try to form the symbols of the four tribes. He managed to make the Clavat and Lilty symbols, but couldn't maintain them as he tried to make the Selkie symbol.

He gave up as he heard footsteps coming toward him after an hour and immediately placed the water back in the stream below the bridge. He turned to see Sasuke and Sakura walking toward him. Sasuke had a confused look on his face, but Sakura had a glint in her eyes that Naruto didn't like for some reason.

"Morning," Naruto said in greeting.

"Hn," Sasuke replied as he leaned on the rail next to Naruto.

"Morning," Sakura replied, before asking with an evil grin, "I saw that your date with Hinata went well, if that kiss was anything to go by."

Naruto, blushing a deep crimson normally found on Hinata, responded by throwing his female teammate into the stream with his powers as Sasuke stared at him in shock. "How the hell do you know about that?" Naruto yelled at her.

"K-Kakashi-s-sensei t-told me about the date, and I-I decided to, um, spy on you?" Sakura answered shakily, cause Naruto's expression scared her, regardless of the blush on his face.

Naruto glared at her for a few seconds, them gained an evil smile. "Okay, Kakashi-sensei's gonna get it now." Sakura sighed in relief as she hauled herself out of the stream before Naruto added, "But don't think you're off the hook yet, Sakura."

Sakura groaned and hung her head. _'I knew it was a bad idea to mention it! Now he's really mad at me!'_

Naruto turned to Sasuke. "And why the heck did you tell your guardians about my bloodline?"

Sasuke responded, "If I have to go through the CRA, so do you."

"You don't have to. The CRA is completely optional. You get to choose if you want to take multiple wives, and if you do but don't want to choose them, only the Hokage can choose for you. The council can't do anything about it," Naruto explained.

Sasuke frowned, then said, "Homura and Kotaru said it was required."

"They didn't know the exact wording. I asked to check when they tried to force it on me"

At that point Kakashi showed up. "Yo!" he managed to say before he was attacked by a flock of Zus as big as his hand. "Whoa!" he screamed as he fell into the stream and disappeared in a puff of smoke, showing that it was a Shadow Clone.

The real Kakashi called out, "Call off the Zus and I'll come out, Naruto."

Naruto grumbled and summoned a portal to send them back. The Zus immediately flew into it except one, which landed on Naruto's shoulder.

Naruto closed the portal as Kakashi came out and rhetorically asked, "I take it Sakura told you?"

"Yes," Naruto replied, glaring at his sensei. "You're lucky I can't summon Bahamut."

Kakashi paled, got on his knees, and said, "Please don't sic him on me when you're able to!"

"Who's Bahamut? And what is that strange bird?" Sakura asked, looking at the Zu warily, as if it would attack her.

"Bahamut is a dragon summon that has existed since the time of the four tribes," Naruto said as he stroked its neck. "And this little creature is a Zu. That's spelled Z-u. He's a miasma monster that has been tamed for use by people."

"A monster from miasma?" Sakura asked, eyes wide. "How? Spots with miasma streams are in the single digits, and none of them spawn Zus or anything too dangerous."

"Zus can live away from miasma, as can some subspecies of Behemoths, which can also be tamed."

"How do you know that?" Sasuke asked.

"I found a few books with information on monsters."

"ANYWAY," Kakashi said, getting the Genin's attention, "I'm gonna be training you harder this month. On our last mission, we got lucky, but next time we may not be. So prepare to go through hell." His eyes glinted malevolently, making his students wonder what was in store for them.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: Alright chapter's done! Now don't worry, I won't be making Naruto all-powerful, but he will be stronger than most of the Genin in the exam due to his training.**

**Also, you have read that Naruto has the OPTION of having multiple wives. I intentionally worded the CRA like that to give him the choice. But you probably know what his decision will be. -.-'**

**Anyway, please review!**

**Edit: Added some descriptions and fixed a missing sentence.**


	4. A Changing Life and Magicites

**Okay, here's the next chapter of DOTGB! Now, the NaruHina relationship may seem rushed, but remember, the two are on deadlines. So I don't want to hear anything about it! Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

0o0o0o0o0

It had been two weeks since Kakashi started training his Genin to the ground. They learned a lot, but were sore after every training session. Naruto had even collapsed during the first one when he dispelled sixty of his seventy clones at the same time after they learned the three Wind jutsus Kakashi set them to learn, which caused the remaining ten to dispell in the middle of chakra control exercises. Kakashi then ordered him to use only ten clones to train, since he didn't want his student to kill himself from memory overload. Sasuke had increased his repertoire of Fire jutsu and even learned a few Lightning jutsu, as well as improving his chakra control and capacity. Sakura had the worst time, as she was physically the weakest of the team. Her stamina and chakra capacity improved quickly to the point where she could walk up and down the trees in the training grounds three times without resting compared to Naruto's new eight times and Sasuke's five times. She also learned a few Water and Earth jutsu, as well as working on the medical jutsu scrolls Naruto had leant her. After every session, the team was too exhausted to do anything else besides go home and rest, then do three missions the next day to make their mission quota.

Fortunately for Naruto and Hinata, Kakashi had given his team a day off on Friday. The two had discussed the kiss they shared and agreed to wait to see where their relationship would go, and decided to go around town and spend time together. Apart from one incident with a drunk villager at Ichiraku's, the date went well but Naruto was still unsure about how he felt, while Hinata fell even more in love with him. Naruto asked her out again for Wednesday, as they both were free that day. Naruto bought a boquet of tulips, white roses, and purple lilacs for Hinata, who accepted the boquet with a blush and a kiss on the cheek. She knew what the flowers symbolized, and hoped the boy in front of her was falling for her. They walked around town and talked to each other, each wanting to know more about the other. Right now, they were sitting on a bench in the park, talking about how they were doing with their teams and their completed missions.

"Geez, I never knew Kakashi-sensei could be such a slave driver!" Naruto complained after finishing his explanation of his team's new training schedule.

Hinata giggled. "He pr-probably doesn't want anything bad h-happening again, l-like your C-Rank t-turned A-Rank m-mission."

Naruto frowned, then smiled. "Yeah, you're probably right. Actually, completely right. So, how's your training been going?"

"It's going well," Hinata said, surprising those who heard her. She wasn't stuttering as much as before, after all! "Kurenai-sensei is t-teaching us Genjutsu and has in-instructed us to learn wh-whatever jutsu we want to learn on our own time."

"What are you trying to learn? Wait, lemme guess...medical jutsu, right?" Naruto asked.

"Y-yes, but it has b-been difficult t-to try to learn, be-because the cl-clan elders are try-trying to for-force me into an a-arrange ma-marriage wi-with a duke of our country," Hinata said, tearing up.

Naruto noticed and asked, "Is it that bad, Hinata-chan? You can tell me."

"N-not h-here," Hinata said, glancing around while fighting the tears that threatened to escape. "C-can we g-go so-somewhere qu-quieter?"

Naruto nodded. "Sure." He stood up, took her hand, and lead her to a deserted training field. "Are the elders really that bad, Hinata-chan?"

Tears started falling from Hinata's eyes as she explained, crying into Naruto's shirt, "Th-they are in-insistent th-that I-I m-marry this d-d-duke th-that is o-older th-than m-my father, b-but I-I d-don't wa-want to! They...they th-think I-I'm we-weakening the bl-bloodline, be-because I-I inherited my-my mo-mother's personality. Th-they say I-I'm a st-stain on the cl-clan's na-name, a-and wa-want m-me to ma-marry h-him to re-restore the 'ho-honor o-of the cl-clan!' Bu-but th-that's n-not wh-why I-I do-don't wa-want to m-marry th-that du-duke! I-I'm al-already i-in lo-love wi-with y-you! I-I do-don't wa-want t-to lea-leave y-you!"

Naruto stood there, shocked. He was furious that the elders of her clan said those things to her and that they were trying to marry her off to a guy older than her father! He was further shocked that she said she was in love with him. He hugged her as he thought about how he felt about her. _'I-I don't think I love her yet, but...but I'll be damned if I let them take her from me! I won't let them! I don't want to lose her!'_

_'Slow down there, lover boy,'_ Takeshi said. _'She doesn't know about me, or of the others here. If you intend to be with her, there cannot be any secrets between the two of you.'_

_'He's right, Naruto,'_ Althea said. _'Not only will you have to tell her about us, but you will have to tell her abou your father, as well as make that marriage contract Hiashi mentioned. Is that what you want?'_

Naruto closed his eyes, thinking hard. He didn't want to lose her. He would be devestated if she left Konoha...left him. His eyes snapped open as he made his decision.

"Hinata-hime, there is a way out of this, but I have to tell you a few things first," Naruto said, stroking her hair. "Please, calm down."

Hinata sobs quietened after a few minutes, and she looked into Naruto's eyes. "Wh-what are they? And wh-what did y-you mean, 'there is a way out'?"

Naruto sighed and sat down against a tree with Hinata in his lap, making both of them blush. "The first two things are S-Class secrets punishable by death if anyone but myself and the Hokage tell anyone. You can't tell anyone unless I give you express permission, okay?"

"O-okay," Hinata said. "But w-why are y-you exempt from such laws?"

"Because the laws take me into account," Naruto said. "Now, you know that the Fourth Hokage killed the Kyubi, right?" Hinata nodded. "That was a lie. No human cam kill a Biju, but they can kill some demons under the right circumstances. What the Fourth did was that he sealed the Kyubi into a newborn child, one who was not even an hour old...me."

Tears started falling from Hinata's eyes again. "Oh, Naruto-kun...I'm so sorry," Hinata said as she embraced him.

"What are you sorry for? It wasn't your fault," Naruto said, hugging her in return.

"I'm sorry be-because I wa-wasn't there f-for you earlier," Hinata explained. "I d-don't care that you h-hav a B-Biju sealed in you. Y-yuo are still N-Naruto, and I lo-love you st-still."

Naruto's heart hammered against his chest as he thought, _'Sh-she still loves me? Even though I have a demon in my gut?'_

_'Called it,'_ Takeshi said. _'I knew she was good for you.'_

_'So did the rest of us,'_ Layle said, rolling his eyes.

_'Not now, you two!'_ Althea chastised her husband and Takeshi. _'Let Naruto think!'_ She then pushed away all view from the outside world from the four in her descendant's mind.

And think Naruto did. He didn't want to lose her even more now. Just the thought alone hurt him. He tightened his grip on the girl in his lap a bit as he whispered "Thank you, Hinata-hime" in her ear a few times, not noticing the change in suffix.

"N-Naruto-kun? What was the o-other S-Class law you wanted to t-tell me?" Hinata asked after a while.

"The other one..." Naruto said, his eyes sad. "The other one is about who my father is."

"What do you mean?"

"Haven't you ever wondered why I look like the Fourth? Doesn't it seem strange that he picked a random orphan to seal the Kyubi into?"

Hinata frowned in confusion as she looked at Naruto's face. To tell the truth, she did wonder who his father was occaisionally, and it did seem strange that the Fourth used an orphan to seal Kyubi into. She studied her would-be love's face for a few seconds, then gasped softly, making Naruto smile. "Y-you mean..."

"Yes, Hinata-hime. My father is the same man who sealed the Kyubi into me," Naruto said.

"W-why did he..."

"How could he force any other parent to do something he wasn't willing to do himself? I don't blame him, nor do I blame Kyubi, or rather Takeshi, either."

Hinata looked at Naruto, confused that he called the Kyubi Takeshi. She asked him why he did that.

"That brings us to the last two things I have to tell you," Naruto said, then brought her forehead to his, pulling her into his mindscape.

0o0o0o0o0

**Naruto's Mindscape**

Naruto and Hinata landed in a forest clearing. Hinata looked around and asked, "N-Naruto-kun, wh-where are we?"

"This is my mindscape, Hinata-hime. We're in my mind," Naruto explained, drawing a gasp from the girl.

"Y-your mindscape?" Hinata asked. "How?"

"I drew you into my mindscape. The last two things I need to tell you would be easier to explain here, and no one will overhear us here."

"What are they?"

"I believe that that's our cue," a voice said behind Hinata, and the girl spun around to see Layle, Althea, and Amidatelion standing ten feet rom her.

"Who-" Hinata began.

"My ancestors, and their friend Amidatelion," Naruto said before they explained everything to Hinata after they sat down.

Hinata was silent throughout the entire explanation apart from a few gasps and questions she asked. When they were done, she said, "This is...amazing. I-I never knew that this c-could happen."

"Nor did any of us," Althea said, to which Layle and Amidatelion nodded.

"Wait, wouldn't the Kyubi be here as well?" Hinata asked, realizing that the giant fox was nowhere to be seen.

"Right here, young Hyuga," Takeshi said, walking out of the woods to her left in his hybrid form. He was about six feet tall with red hair and slitted red eyes. He was dressed in a red t-shirt and black pants, his nine tails waving behind him.

Hinat gasped and made to get behind Naruto as Takeshi said, "Don't worry, I won't hurt you. I thought ninjas would know not to take rumors for granted." He sat down next to Naruto, ruffling the latter's hair.

Naruto slapped Takeshi's hand away. "Will you stop that?" Naruto asked indignantly.

"No! I never had a little brother, so I'm going to enjoy this!" Takeshi said, chuckling.

Naruto grumbled.

Hinata was shocked. The Kyubi, no Takeshi called Naruto his little brother. _'Does he really see him as a brother?'_ She asked Naruto, "Why did Takeshi call you his brother?"

"Because I see him as one," Takeshi answered as Naruto opened his mouth. Naruto shot a glare at his 'older brother,' then calmed down.

"But if this is who you truly are, why did you attack Konoha?" Hinata asked, wanting to know.

"Because I was tricked," Takeshi said sadly, his eyes speaking of pain. "A man smelling of snakes and a Crystal Bearer with a red right arm attacked my mate and kit, and killed them. Humans can actually kill demons if the demon in question either has given birth in the last week or is less than a year old. I wasn't there when they attacked, but instead out hunting for them. When I returned, I saw the two men briefly before they disappeared using an Earth-style stealth technique, leaving behind a Konoha headband. I tried to save them, but it was no use. My kit, Genshi, was already dead, and Mirei died in my arms. I was so enraged, I flew reason out the window and headed to Konoha, not realizing that the people there had nothing to do with it. I attacked and because of my rage immocent lives were lost." Takeshi hung his head, tears forming and fists clenched.

Hinata put her hand on his shoulder. "I...I don't blame you," she said. She looked at Naruto then back at Takeshi, both of whom looking at her thankfully. "Had I been in your position, I would have done the same. Whoever killed your mate and kit is to blame, and we will find them."

"Definitely," Naruto said, nodding. "I already said that I'd help you, Takeshi, and I don't go back on my word."

Takeshi smiled and said, "Thank you. Both of you." He then faded, obviously wanting to be by himself for awhile.

Naruto stood up as everything started to fade. "Time to go, Hinata-hime," he said as both of them faded out.

0o0o0o0o0

**Real world**

Naruto and Hinata woke up with a start. They looked in each other's eyes, then smiled at the same time.

"Thank you, Naruto-kun, for trusting me," Hinata whispered as she hugged him.

"No, thank you, Hina-hime, for staying," Naruto whispered back as he returned the hug. His eyes met hers again, and he leaned in. Their lips met, and they closed their eyes, savoring the moment.

After a few seconds, they pulled back, blushing, but smiling at each other.

"N-Naruto-kun," Hinata said, "I don't want to lose you."

"Same here, Hinata-hime, same here," Naruto replied.

"B-but how can you help? I-" Hinata said, but was stopped by Naruto placing a finger on her lips.

"Don't worry, Hinata-hime," Naruto said. "Trust me, you won't lose me. You're stuck with me, and there's nothing anyone can do about it. Now, let's go."

Naruto created a clone, which shot off without a word, and took Hinata's hand. The two started walking, though only Naruto knew where they were going.

After thirty minutes, the two stood in front of the Hokage tower. Hinata looked at Naruto, confused, but all he said was, "Don't worry. I'll explain soon."

They entered the tower to find the clerk in front of the Hokage's office filing paperwork. She looked up when the two entered and said, "I'm sorry, but Lord Hokage isn't in right now." The lie was obvious, as all of them heard the Hokage grumbling about his paperwork and the clerk herself was glaring at Naruto.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Really? Then who is in his office? I thought no one was allowed in his office when he's not around."

The clerk glared harder at him, but before she said anything, Hiashi Hyuga walked in.

"Ah, I thought I'd find you here, Naruto," Hiashi said, nodding at him, and gave Hinata a small smile, which further confused the girl. He looked at the clerk and said, "If you try to stop anyone from seeing Lord Hokage again when they have an appointment, you could find yourself behind bars. Do you understand?"

The clerk nodded and let them go on. Hiashi let his daughter and her soon-to-be fiance go in first, and closed the office door after them.

The Hokage looked up from his paperwork and sighed in relief. "I can assume you made your decision, Naruto?"

Naruto nodded as he and the other two sat down, smiling. "I have, on both subjects. I'll only take one for now."

Hiruzen smiled and nodded. He pulled out a paper and wrote something down then handed it to him. Naruto signed it and returned it to the Hokage, who stamped and filed the paper.

Hinata looked at the three, utterly confused. Hiruzen noticed and asked, "How come you didn't tell her?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "I...uh...kinda wanted to surprize her."

Hiruzen sighed. "Right. Let's get Hinata here up to speed," he said, and explained about the CRA meeting, which made Hinata frown as she realized she might have to share. Hiashi took it from there and explained about the marriage contract he wanted to make for the two Genin, making Hinata faint with a massive blush.

"I knew that would happen," Naruto said as he stopped her from falling out of her chair.

Hiruzen chuckled. "Yes, well...are you sure about only taking one wife? You do remember what we discussed, right?"

Naruto nodded. "Yes."

Hiashi nodded. He was glad he was leaving his daughter with Naruto.

Naruto said, "I don't want to hurt her. Your elders have hurt her enough."

Hiashi nodded. "That is very true. I hope you treat her right, or I'll make sure you can't have kids, at least for a while."

Naruto flinched and crossed his legs, making the two grown men chuckle. "Don't worry. I won't. But it may be a good idea to have her move in with me. The Hyuga elders are gonna be pissed when they find out."

Hiashi frowned, then nodded. "I think that would be a good course of action. That way, they can't hurt her easily."

"So, shall we write up the contract?" Hiruzen asked, to which the two nodded. Hinata woke up at that point, and helped with the contract. Within a few hours, the contract was written up and signed by everyone in the room. Hiruzen stamped the contract, making it official, and put it in a hidden vault to keep it safe.

"Hinata, let's head home," Hiashi said.

Hinata looked at Naruto, who smiled and said, "Don't worry. You'll see me soon enough." Hinata nodded and gave him a peck on the cheek. Naruto blushed as he left the office and headed home to clear out one of the unused bedrooms for Hinata to sleep in.

Hinata meanwhile, was held back with her father.

"Hiashi, Hinata, one minute," Hiruzen said. Hiashi closed the door that Naruto had just exited and looked at his leader. "Naruto's place of residence has changed, so you will have to be informed of where to go." He told them the address, and Hiashi's eyes bulged. "Yes, Hiashi, that is exactly what it means," Hiruzen said before Hiashi could ask.

"Ummm," Hinata spoke up, getting their attention. "Naruto already told me a-about his tenant, and his parentage. You don't have to hide it from me."

Hiruzen and Hiashi looked at her, smiling. "I'm glad you're not like most of the village," Hiashi said, putting his hand on his daughter's shoulder.

Hinata looked at her father, who was looking at her with pride. "Th-thank you, father."

"Now let's go. I do not want to keep your fiance waiting." Hinata looked at her father strangely, before following him out. Hiashi sent one last glare at the clerk, who didn't look at him in fear of upsetting him. Hinata followed her father out, wondering what he meant. she had a feeling it would change her life even more. Oh, how right she was.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto entered his home and created fourteen clones. Three headed to the library to find some scrolls on medical jutsu while the rest and the original each began to move to a different bedroom. The doorbell rang at that moment, and Naruto looked through the window to see who it was. His eyes widened as he whispered, "How the hell did they follow me?" Standing outside his gate were none other than his teammates, staring at the building they saw Naruto enter, speechless.

Grumbling, Naruto created another clone and instructed the ones there to go to the bedrooms and check them. He then exited his house, walked up to the gate, and asked his shocked teammates, "How the hell did you follow me?"

"We just kept an eye on you," Sasuke said. "And how the hell did you get access to the Fourth's estate? You should get out while you can, otherwise you'll have ANBU after you for trespassing."

"They can't do anything," Naruto said, then felt a clone dispell, and gained its memories. "Dammit," Naruto hissed, then opened the gate. "Get in the house. I'll explain later. Oh, and if you break it, you pay for a replacement."

Confused, Sakura and Sasuke looked at each other, then entered the yard, ran to the house, and entered it just as Hinata and Hiashi turned the corner. Hinata carried two suitcases, and Hiashi carried another. Naruto rubbed his temples and quoted a friend. "Troublesome." A few blocks away, said friend sneezed violently and muttered the same thing.

Hinata and Hiashi came up to his gates at that point, both wearing slightly confused expressions.

Hiashi nodded to Naruto and said, "Take care of her, Naruto. And about your 'guests'..."

Naruto sighed. "I really didn't want to explain things to them yet. I just hope they understand."

Hiashi nodded. "I understand. You don't have to tell them everything though."

"I wasn't planning to."

Hinata asked, "Could you open the gates, Naruto-kun? I want to get settled as soon as possible."

Naruto nodded and opened the gates again. Hinata walked in, and Naruto created a clone to carry the suitcases she was carrying while he took the one Hiashi had.

"Hinata, Naruto, look after each other. And don't worry, I'll keep the elders away from you," Hiashi said, then disappeared in a swirl of leaves. Naruto closed the gates again and walked with Hinata to the door. He opened it and said, "Ladies first."

Hinata giggled and entered to see Sakura and Sasuke looking at her, confused. Naruto entered behind her with her suitcases, which added to their confusion.

"What's going on, Naruto?" Sasuke asked. "Why are you here, why is Hinata here, and why does she have suitcases with her?"

Naruto sighed and dispelled the clones in the rest of the house. "I'll explain soon, but first let me find Hinata a room."

He left with Hinata and the clone following him. Once out of earshot of his teammates, Hinata asked, "What did you mean, find me a room? I thought we would share one." She blushed brightly as both Naruto and his clone turned to her, blushing badly as well.

"A-are you s-sure about that, Hinata-hime?" Naruto asked. "Technically, we're only engaged."

"So?" Hinata asked as she wrapped her arms around the real Naruto. "I just want to sleep in the same bed. That's all. Please, Naruto-kun?" She looked at him with her puppy-eyes, making Naruto try to look away and say no. But he couldn't look away fromm her.

He sighed. "Fine, Hinata-hime. Just...to sleep."

"Yay!" Hinata said, hugging him. "Thank you, Naruto-kun!"

Naruto chuckled and whispered, "Man, I'm whipped."

"Yes, but I'll make it up to you," Hinata whispered back before kissing him.

Naruto kissed her back. "I wonder how you'll do that," he teased before he led her to his room. "Here we are," he said as he opened the door to the master bedroom, which was on the second floor. Hinata's jaw dropped as she saw how big it was.

"W-wow," Hinata whispered as she looked around. The bed was a king size, which would let them grow into it. It was placed in a beautiful carved-wood bed frame, with its head placed against the far wall. On each side of the bed were two equally beautiful wooden nightstands, though the one on the left had a mirror. Next to them were equally beautiful wooden dressers. A couch sat on the right wall with a bookcase to its right. On the left wall was a large window that had its center at the middle of the wall and extended a quarter of the way towards the walls connected to it. The window reached from the floor to the ceiling and gave a clear view of the garden in the backyard. On the wall that the door was in was another door at the other end, leading to the rather large bathroom.

"I reacted the same," Naruto said as he and his clone placed Hinata's suitcases near the closest dresser. "This will be your dresser and nightstand," he gestured to the said furniture. "The bathroom is through that door-" He pointed to the other door. "-and trust me, it even has a jacuzzi."

As her fiance dispelled his clone, Hinata opened the door to the bathroom, and sure enough, it had one. Hinata blushed deeply as she teased, "W-well, I-I guess i-it's a g-good thing I br-brought my sw-swimsuit."

Naruto blushed deeply at the thought of Hinata in a swimsuit, then shook his head to clear it. Hinata giggled at his reaction, and winked at him.

"M-maybe later, H-Hinata-hime. We still have to explain things to Sasuke and Sakura."

Hinata sighed as she walked to him and said, "I just hope they understand. We really had no choice but to move in together."

Naruto wrapped his arms around her and kissed her lips. "Me, too. Now let's go."

They headed back downstairs to find Sakura and Sasuke looking at the various items in the living room. "Hey," Naruto greeted them, which got their attention.

"Okay, now that you two are done, can you please explain what's going on?" Sakura asked, annoyed that she had to wait.

"Alright, sit down," Naruto said, gesturing to one of the couches, which his teammates sat on while he and Hinata sat on the one facing them. Naruto then explained why he and Hinata were living there, which took over an hour to explain. Sakura and Sasuke sat there in shock after Naruto finished, just staring at them with slightly open mouths.

"Y-you're the son of the Fourth Hokage and Kushina Uzumaki? The Yellow Flash and the Red Whirlpool? And they were married?" Sakura asked.

"Yes. My parents kept their marriage a secret, because they didn't want their enemies seeking revenge through each other."

"Makes sense," Sasuke said, frowning in thought. "And now you and Hinata here are engaged because her clan elders were trying to marry her off to a duke older than her father. What are those elders thinking?"

"Maybe they were accepting bribes from him," Sakura said.

"Maybe," Hinata said. "But I didn't want to. They even invited him over once, and he couldn't keep his eyes off me." She shuddered, and Naruto wrapped his arm around her.

"Don't worry, Hinata-hime. I won't let him near you," he said.

Hinata smiled at him.

Naruto then looked at his teammates. "Now, you have to explain something. Why were you following me?"

"I just wanted to return these," Sakura said as she pulled out the medical scrolls he lent her and handed them over.

"I wanted to know if you had any scrolls on Fire and Lightning jutsu," Sasuke said.

Naruto sighed. "Follow me," he said as he stood up, then walked to the library as the others walked behind. He reached the library and opened the door to it.

He heard the girls gasp, and Sasuke whispered, "Holy..." They entered the library and looked around.

"Whoa," Sakura said. "This is a lot of jutsu. Did they come with the house?"

"They did," Naruto said, placing the medical scrolls back in their spots. "My dad wanted the library this big because of the amount of scrolls and books he and mom had. You can borrow some, but-" He turned to Sasuke, who had immediately started taking the entire Fire jutsu section. "-not an entire section. Sasuke, put them back in their correct places."

Sasuke frowned and reluctantly put most of the jutsu back in their correct spots. He tried to keep the A-Rank techniques, but Naruto put them back and made him take a few D- and C-Ranks he didn't know. "Oh come on, Naruto! At least let me-" Sasuke protested childishly.

"You don't have enough chakra Sasuke," Naruto said as he walked over to the books. "I'll let you borrow them, but you have to wait until you have enough chakra."

Sasuke sighed. He didn't want to lose this treasure trove, but neither did he want to upset his friend.

Sakura smiled at her teammates' arguement as she looked at the books. One of them caught her eye and, curious, she pulled it out and opened it. She frowned as she read the spells, their explanations, and their theories. "Naruto? What does this book mean when it says 'magic'?" she asked.

Naruto walked over and looked at the book for a second, then turned away. "Oh, it explains what people used before chakra was discovered. Magic and jutsu use the same energies inside us, with two major differences. First, when we use magic, the energies don't combine in the same way, and second, the energies return to us within minutes when they are completely drained."

"Cool," Sasuke said as he looked at the spells with Sakura. "How long does it take to learn magic?"

"Years or months, depending on the spell, unless you have an affinity for it," Naruto said. "But with magicites, you don't have that limitation. You can just channel energy into the magicite and get the spell you want to cast. But those are military magicite. Economic magicite is used for lighting a room or powering vehicles. Unfortunately, all magicite are incredibly rare today, and I haven't had the chance to find out how to get to the Yuke Sky City, the capital of the Yuke world. But maybe there are some magicite here."

"How can you be sure the Yuke capital is still around?" Sakura asked, raising her eyebrow.

Naruto frowned. "Good point. But I should be able to find a way to check." He bumped against a vase that stood on a pedestal. He grabbed it before it could fall, and noticed that the panel behind it seemed off.

"What was that about us not breaking anything?" Sakura needled her friend, but Naruto ignored her as he put the vase on a table, then pulled the panel that was behind it off. Sakura frowned. "Naruto?"

"Look." Everyone moved to see what Naruto was looking at. They saw a complicated seal on a panel. "It's a blood seal."

"How can you tell?" Sasuke asked, frowning.

"There are books on seals here. This one is for family use." Naruto bit his thumb and smeared the blood on the seal. The bookcase to everyone's left moved forward, then away from them. A staircase was behind it, going down. "I'll go first." No one argued, since it was his home. They went down the staircase, though they stopped as the bookcase concealing it slid back into place.

"Oh no! How are we getting out?" Sakura fretted, before the area around the staircase lit up. Naruto looked to the source and gasped. The others followed his gaze and gasped as well. In a light socket was not a light bulb, as they expected, but an orange sphere lighting the staircase. "Is that...?"

"An economic magicite," Naruto said. He looked down the staircase, excited. "Come on!" He started down again, this time using his gravity powers to slide down the rail.

"Wait up!" Sasuke said, before doing the same with his chakra.

The girls just shared a look, each clearly thinking, _'Boys.'_ Sakura shrugged before following the boys' lead, while Hinata merely sighed and did the same.

The four slid down the rail quickly, and Naruto entered a room at high speed. He flipped then used his gravity powers to stop his momentum and land safely, then did the same for his friends as they entered. When Hinata entered, he used his powers to not only stop her momentum, but to pull her into a quick kiss. Hinata turned a deep crimson and pulled away reluctantly, embarrassed about the public display of affection.

"N-Naruto-kun! N-not in fr-front of y-your teammates!"

Naruto just chuckled, but released her. He still held her hand though.

"Whoa," Sakura said as she looked around. The others looked too, and their jaws dropped as they said, "Wow."

Placed in shelves around the 50'-by-50' room were magicites, both military and economic. The military section was organized by spell type and then rank within said type, starting with Fire, then Blizzard, Thunder, Aero, Water, Earth spells, Gravity, Zero Gravity, Stop, Cure and Esuna, status spells, Holy spells, then Dark spells. There were at least four of each, and each military magicite had one to four white crystals in it, signifying its rank. The economic section just had its magicite.

_'Whoa. Amidatelion, are most of the spells here?'_ Naruto mentally asked.

Amidatelion looked closely at them, then said, _'Most. I do not see a Mega Flare, nor a few Dark- and Holy-based spells. It is amazing your father had all these. Perhaps your family has collected them over the years.'_

_'That would explain it,'_ Naruto agreed as he picked up one of his ten red Fira magicite. "Sasuke, here." He tossed the magicite to the Uchiha, who caught it. "You can have that Fira. Just don't go showing off with it until I learn how to make more."

Sasuke's eyes widened. "What? Y-you're just going to give me this? Why?"

"I just feel like it," Naruto said as he grabbed one each of his ten yellow Thundara and blue Blizzara magicite, and tossed them to him. "Here's a Blizzara and a Thundara. Besides, you may need them." He grabbed two of his ten green Cura magicites and tossed one each to Sakura and Hinata. "Here, girls. Those are Cura magicite, from what I've read."

"Cura?" Sakura asked, looking at the magicite.

"The second rank of healing spells," Naruto explained. "The standard ranking goes Cure, then Cura, Curaga, and finally Curaja. Most spells follow the same pattern." He grabbed two of the twenty clear-green Esuna and tossed them to the girls as well. "Here's an Esuna. It's mainly for healing status effects or treating poison, but they're not as fast-working as medical jutsu."

"What does Cura do?" Sakura asked.

"Heals injuries, " Naruto said, pocketing a sky-blue Aerora and a light-brown Quake. "Fire shoots a homing fireball, Blizzard forms ice crystals above your target's head then drops them, Thunder makes a bolt of lightning hit your target, though it will only hurt him or her, Aero tosses your target into the air, Water surrounds your target with crushing water, Earth spells use the earth to attack, Gravity and Zero Gravity do their namesakes, Stop freezes you in place until a certain amount of time, status-inflicting spells do their namesakes as well, Holy spells usually are light-based spells, and Dark spells are darkness-based spells." As he gave a brief explanation of what each type of spell did he pointed to each one as he explained them.

"You read that book upstairs earlier, didn't you?" Sasuke asked.

"Yep," Naruto said, grabbing one of the two Ultima spells and, after mulling it over, pocketing it.

"A-are you sure we can have these?" Sakura asked as Naruto handed her a Quake and Watera.

Naruto said, "Yes. I'm giving you ones I have at least ten of." He handed Hinata a Watera and Thundara.

Sasuke looked at the economic, then at the staircase, then his watch. His eyes widened as he realized the time. "Whoa, it's 7:30. I guess we lost track of time."

Sakura's eyes widened as she hastily pocketed her magicite and headed to the staircase. "Oh no, I'm going to be late for dinner!"

The others just looked at each other, then pocketed their magicite as well and headed up. When they reached the top, they saw a worried Sakura looking at a blood seal.

"Calm down, Sakura," Naruto said as he bit his thumb and swiped the seal, making the bookshelf that hid the staircase move. "I'm sure your parents won't be too mad at you."

"True, but I don't like being late to dinner," Sakura said. "Well, I gotta go. See you tomorrow!" She ran outside, forgetting that Naruto had to open the gate. Naruto created a clone to let her and Sasuke out as the Uchiha walked out after a small thanks and goodbye. The clone dispelled after it did its job.

Hinata said, "I'll start cooking dinner." She headed to the kitchen with Naruto close behind.

"I'm sure I'm going to love whatever you make," Naruto said, giving her a quick peck. She blushed and smiled at him.

Naruto walked with his fiancee, thinking that he was a lucky guy to have someone like her.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: Okay, chapter's done! I hope you liked it. Remember, Naruto and Hinata were on a deadline. Don't complain, just accept it.**

**And just because I can, here's a preview of the next chapter.**

[scene shows Team Seven entering a cave with an archaeologist.]

Naruto: What is theis place?

[cuts to underground ruins near the Fire Country's capital]

Sakura: These ruins look ancient.

[part of the floor vanishes]

Sasuke: AAAHH!

[Naruto catches Sasuke]

Naruto: And unstable.

[Naruto reads inscription on floor]

Naruto: A creation myth...

**Next time on DOTGB: The Ancient Ruins**

Naruto: Leave it to me.

Layle: Why does that sound familiar?


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Okay, I'm back with the next installment of DOTGB! Last chapter, I left you a preview of this one. Also, Hinata had to move in with Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke found out about Naruto's parents and his engagement to Hinata, and all of them now have magicites! Also, there will be no Sakura or Sasuke bashing! In this story, Sasuke is a good guy, so be prepared. I might as well explain about magic affinities, to avoid confusing people.**

**Magical affinities are closely related to chakra affinities. Everyone can learn magic, and each person has an affinity for one or more types of spells. The time it takes to learn a spell varies depending on the chakra affinities a person has. Naruto has an easier time learning and using wind magic because his main affinity is Wind, much like how it's easier for him to learn Wind jutsu. Conversely, he has a harder time learning other magic in the same way that it's harder to learn elemental jutsu he doesn't have an affinity for. The reason he has an affinity for Gravity-related magic as well is because he is a Crystal Bearer with powers to control gravity.**

**Okay, hope that helps, and enjoy the chapter! Try to find the special guest!**

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto woke up from his sleep and yawned. He felt a pressure on his chest and looked to see that Hinata, in her sleep, had moved onto him. He smiled at the sight of his fiance's sleeping form. He then gently said as he shook her awake, "Hime, time to wake up."

Hinata moaned as she joined Naruto in the waking world. She looked up at him and said sleepily, "Do I have to? I'm comfortable." She laid her head back down, but it was brought back up by Naruto before he kissed her on the lips. She woke up instantly and started kissing back.

He pulled away and smirking a bit, asked, "Are you awake now?"

Hinata playfully hit him and said, "Maybe." She then kissed him again, wrapping her arms around his neck.

Naruto smiled before kissing her back, then pulled away and said, "We really should get up. We do have to meet our teams after all."

Hinata sighed and got up, giving Naruto a glimpse of her early-developing body before held her arms up shyly in front of her torso. She went to her dresser and pulled out a change of clothes, then headed to the bathroom for a shower.

Naruto got up as well, pulled out some clothes, and headed to a different bathroom after he created a Shadow Clone to fix some bacon and eggs.

A few minutes later, Hinata and Naruto sat in the kitchen eating the breakfast Naruto's clone cooked.

"Did Lady Althea teach you how to cook, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked as she ate.

"Yeah, she did," Naruto replied. He checked the time. "We should head to our teams meeting spots in about fifteen minutes. You have your magicite in your pack?"

"I have them in a seperate one, and I have it on me," Hinata replied, showing him the two pouches at the back of her waist.

"That's good. Don't use them unless it's necessary. I have no doubt that people will start harassing me about them when word gets out that I have a lot of magicite."

Hinata giggled before drinking some orange juice. "They would be wasting their time, though."

Naruto chuckled. "Yeah, they would be. Maybe I could start selling them when I learn how to make them, depending on how it's done."

"Maybe, but I don't think making them is easy," Hinata said. She pulled out the Cura she had and looked at it, then remembered something. "Naruto? I remember seeing some other magicite with more than four of these crystals in them. Don't the crystals signify the spell's rank?"

"Most of them," Naruto said, remembering what Amidatelion told him, and what he read. "Some magicites, like some you saw in the basement, have more than four crystals. Those are unique spells, different from the other spells of the same type. I read that the magicite for Mega Flare, an extremely powerful Fire-based spell, has five crystals. Ultima, the most powerful Light spell, has six." He pulled out the Ultima magicite and showed it to her. Sure enough, there were six crystals arranged in a hexagon from the angle Hinata saw it.

"What's the highest amount of crystals a magicite can have?"

"Six," Naruto said. "There are some magicite without crystals, but those are for summons like Bahamut, Ifrit, and Shiva."

"Summons? Like an animal summoning contract?" Hinata asked, confused. "And what animals are they?

"Yeah, the summon magicites are similar to summon contracts. The summons are many animals. Bahamut is a dragon. Some, like Ifrit and Shiva, have human-like appearances. Shiva is a woman, and Ifrit is a male. Ifrit is a Fire element, Shiva is a Blizzard, and Bahamut doesn't have an element. All summons, from what I know, are intelligent, and can hold conversations with their summoner. You can learn how to summon them without the magicite, but the summon has to teach you."

"Have you summoned any of them before?"

"No, I have a way to go with Amidatelion's summoning powers before I can summon any of them," Naruto said, frowning.

"Oh." Hinata looked downcast. She wanted to meet the summons.

Naruto noticed the time. "We should get ready. It's nearly time to go." He stood up and put his empty plate and cup in the dishwasher, then headed to the bathroom to brush his teeth. Hinata stood up and did the same before following him.

They left the Namikaze estate and walked together for part of the way before Naruto gave Hinata a kiss and said, "See you later, hime."

Hinata blushed and said, "See you. Be careful."

"You too." Naruto walked off and waved goodbye before he turned a corner.

Hinata waved back as he waved, then walked off to her team's meeting spot, smiling.

Ten minutes later, Naruto arrived at his team's meeting spot and said, "Morning, Sakura, Sasuke."

"Morning," his teammates replied. Sakura then asked, "So am I off the hook?"

Naruto frowned in thought. "I'll think about it."

"I'm really sorry about following you on your date, and to your house," she said truly.

"Just don't do it again," Naruto said. "When either of you want to return the scrolls I lent you, just give them back at the next meeting. Alright?"

His teammates nodded. Kakashi appeared in a swirl of leaves as Sakura asked, "Does Kakashi-sensei know about your parents?"

"Yeah, he does," Naruto said. "He was the one who was holding the keys to the house, after all, as well as my dad's student."

"Makes sense," Sasuke said, nodding. "What do you think our missions will be today?"

"We're about to find out, after you tell me how you found out about Naruto's parents," Kakashi said, alerting his team to his presence. Kakashi glared at his students, making them cringe.

"They followed me yesterday because Sakura wanted to return the medical scrolls I lent her and Sasuke wanted to see if I had any scrolls on Fire and Lightning jutsu," Naruto explained. "They followed me all the way to my house."

"Shouldn't you have sensed them?" Kakashi asked.

"I was too distracted," Naruto said, underlining that he didn't want to talk about it right now.

Kakashi sighed. "Great. Now we have to tell Lord Hokage about this. Ah well, we can tell him when we get our missions. Let's go."

They headed to the mission acceptance center to find the Hokage and Iruka there with Team Eight about to request a mission.

Hiruzen noticed Team Seven enter and said, "Ah, good. Team Seven, I'm glad you arrived just now." Everyone looked at him strangely. He grabbed a mission from the B-Rank pile and said, "Someone has found some ruins just outside the capital, and alerted the Daimyo, who in turn alerted me. He has requested two Genin squads for a mission to guard an archaeologist, Taiki Nakashima, as he surveys the ruins. He specifically requested your team, Kakashi, and I've decided to send Team Eight as well." He tossed the scroll to Kakashi, who opened it and read it.

Kakashi sighed. "I can assume we don't have a choice?"

"That is correct," Hiruzen said. "The Daimyo will meet with you at the entrance to the ruins with Professor Nakashima. Prepare accordingly. There may be a miasma stream or other dangers."

Both teams nodded, then left the building. Iruka turned to the Hokage. "Lord Hokage, do you really think it's a good idea to send Genin teams on a B-Rank, even if it's something like this?"

Hiruzen smiled and said, "Don't worry about them Iruka. Especially Naruto. They will be fine."

"I can't help but worry," Iruka replied, frowning. "Naruto is like a little brother to me. I hope he'll be fine."

"Iruka, don't worry too much. Naruto is stronger than you think."

Outside, Naruto repressed a sneeze as he thought, _'Someone is worried about me. Probably Iruka-sensei.'_

Kakashi turned to Kurenai and asked, "This will be interesting, huh, Kurenai?"

Kurenai nodded "It will. Though I do wonder why Lord Hideyoshi requested Genin teams."

Kakashi shrugged, though he had a hunch. "I don't know. I suggest we pack for at least two days. How about we all meet at the gates in an hour?"

"Sure, and be on time, Kakashi!" Kurenai called as he walked away. She sighed and turned to the Genin. "You heard us. Pack for at least two days, meet at the gates in one hour, and don't be late. Understand?"

"Yes, ma'am!" the Genin said, then dispersed to get ready.

Fifty minutes later, Teams Seven and Eight minus the senseis stood at the gates, waiting. Naruto had a bad feeling and had packed three of each second tier magicite spell and two of each third tier magicite in a chest that was sealed in a scroll in his bag. He hoped he was just being paranoid, but still packed them just in case.

"So, Naruto, Hinata, how's your relationship going?" Kiba asked, curious.

Naruto smiled and embraced Hinata, making her blush. "Great. She's a great girl. I kinda regret I never noticed her before." He pecked her on the cheek, making her turn redder.

"N-Naruto-kun! N-not in f-front of everyone!" Hinata protested.

Naruto just chuckled. "Alright, Hina-hime. If you say so."

"Man, you are whipped!" Kiba said, chuckling. He stopped when Naruto and Hinata sent a glare at him. "Okay, I'll shut up. But what about the Hyuga elders, and her father? They're gonna be pissed when they find out, if they haven't already."

"Her father's fine with it," Naruto said. "As for the elders, well, they just have to deal with it."

"Wait, what?" Kiba said, shocked. "Hiashi is okay with you two dating?"

"Yeah," Naruto said.

"He doesn't mind, but he did threaten to castrate Naruto-kun if he hurts me," Hinata said, frowning.

"That makes two of us, then," Kiba said, looking at Naruto, who raised an eyebrow.

Before he could say anything, Kurenai and Kakashi walked up. Kurenai saw Naruto's arms around Hinata and raised an eyebrow. _'Are they getting serious?'_"Alright, since we're all here, we can go. Naruto, could you take your arms off my student?"

Naruto complied and stepped away from Hinata as they signed out and left. The two teams leaped into the trees and sped off toward the capital.

0o0o0o0o0

Later, at the entrance to the ruins

Teams Seven and Eight stood in front of the Daimyo of the Land of Fire, Hideyoshi Asuhara. He was about thirty-five years old with short black hair and green eyes, wearing a standard red and blue royal kimono.

To the Daimyo's left was a girl around the same age as the Genin. She had long, brown hair reaching down to her waist and brilliant sea-green eyes, and was wearing a smaller, female version of the Daimyo's kimono.

To the Daimyo's right was a man in his early twenties. He had light brown hair hidden by an archaeology hat and blue eyes behind oval-shaped glasses. He wore a light brown jacket with many pockets, dark brown pants, and boots. Slung over his shoulder was a large bag that had a few tools sticking out.

Twelve guards stood around them in battle gear. All of them held spears in their hands, though a few had swords strapped to their backs.

"Hello, Lord Hideyoshi," Kakashi said, bowing as Kurenai and the Genin did the same. "I am Kakashi Hatake, and my fellow shinobi are Jonin Kurenai Yuhi, and Genins Hinata Hyuga, Shino Aburame, Kiba Inuzuka, Sakura Haruno, Sasuke Uchiha, and Naruto Uzumaki." He gestured to each as he said their names. "I hope you aren't upset about our time of arrival."

"It is alright," the Daimyo responded, nodding to Kakashi. "Let me introduce you to my daughter, Keirei." He gestured to his daughter, who smiled and nodded at the shinobi in greeting as she received bows. "And this man next to me is the archaeologist you will be protecting, Professor Taiki Nakamasha." The shinobi bowed in greeting, which Taiki returned, making sure nothing fell out of his bag. "These are some strange ruins, and Taiki believes they may be from the time of the four tribes."

Kakashi nodded. "So, these ruins are very important."

"Correct. We didn't dare enter, as there could be monsters down there, as well as a few miasma streams. That's where you come in. You are to protect Professor Nakamasha as he does a primary survey the ruins."

"We understand, Lord Hideyoshi," Kakashi said, bowing again. "Don't worry we won't let anything bad happen to him." He straightened and said, "If that is all, we should begin immediately."

"Of course," Hideyoshi said, nodding. "Keirei, let's return to the city."

Keirei glanced at Naruto and said, "Of course, father." She winked at Naruto, then turned around with her father as the guards formed around them. _'He's cute, but I will reserve any more judgements until I get to know him better, hopefully.'_

Hinata narrowed her eyes at Keirei's back and thought, _'Did she just wink at my fiance?'_

The other shinobi noticed the wink too and thought, _'Oh boy. I can already tell that's gonna be a problem.'_

Naruto thought, _'Crap. One look and she's already flirting. I guess Lord Hideyoshi doesn't know that I won't be taking multiple wives yet. Or maybe he does, and Lady Keirei is unaware that I've already found Hina-hime.'_

_'Probably the latter,' _Takeshi said.

Taiki was unaware of the thoughts of the shinobi and, turning to the ruins, said, "Well, shall we get going?"

The shinobi nodded and entered the ruins with Team Eight in front and Team Seven in the back, with Taiki in between them. The stone tunnel weaved through the ground, sloping downward. Taiki and the shinobi pulled out their flashlights only twenty feet into it. After about thirty minutes of walking and a few hundred feet, the tunnel started getting steeper and curved slightly to the left, making them go slower to avoid falling. This continued for a hundred feet until the ground leveled out, and everyone saw a doorway with no door about thirty feet away.

"Wait!" Kakashi said, making everyone stop. "Naruto, create a Shadow Clone to check for enemies. Hinata, you check as well."

Naruto nodded and did as ordered. The clone headed to the doorway to look around the area as Hinata activated her Byakugan. The clone dispelled after a minute and Hinata deactivated her Byakugan with a frown as Naruto groaned and said sarcastically, "Oh, that's just great."

"What is it?" Taiki asked.

"Monsters," Hinata said. "I couldn't identify them, as I'm not familiar with them."

"Three King Behemoths, two Tonberries, a Tonberry Queen, and an Iron Giant," Naruto said, much to the dismay of Kakashi and Kurenai. "The big purple ones with horns and a wooden club are the King Behemoths, the Tonberries are the green human-sized half-fish half-humans in brown coats wielding knives and lanterns, the Tonberry Queen is wearing a pink bow with a pink dress and has a chainsaw as well as its knife and lantern, and the Iron Giant is light-blue with a giant cog on its back and a helmet."

"Is it really that bad?" Kiba asked, hoping it wasn't.

"From what I've read, King Behemoths are hard enough to deal with when they're on their own, and we have to wake the Iron Giant in order to kill it. Both of them have incredibly tough skin, and can take a lot of damage. The Tonberries can blind you then come up behind you and stab you, and the Queen is worse. She is faster than normal Tonberries, and is twice as strong," Naruto explained. "And that's not taking into account that we have to protect Professor Nakamasha."

Taiki paled and asked, "So should we turn back?"

Naruto sat down, thinking hard. He didn't want to have to reveal his magicites, but he had no choice. He sighed. "We do have a chance. I'm so glad I grabbed these." He pulled out a scroll and opened it, revealing a storage seal. He poured chakra into it and a chest was revealed.

"What's in that, Naruto?" Kiba asked.

Naruto opened the lid, and Kiba, Kurenai, and Taiki gasped in shock as Shino raised his eyebrows.

"Magicites," Naruto said as he grabbed two Thundaga, Firaga, Blizzaga, and Stopga magicite and tossed one each to the senseis. "Here. Those are third tier spells. We'll need them. Kiba, Shino, what are your chakra affinities?"

"Kiba's primary is Fire, and mine is Lightning. But why are you asking?" Shino said, his brow furrowed.

"So I know which ones to lend you," Naruto replied as he grabbed two Fira and Thundara and handed one each to Shino and Kiba. He frowned and grabbed a Curaga and handed it to Taiki. "I want all of them back when we're done with this mission, alright?" He received nods from everyone.

"Why haven't you lent Hinata and your teammates any magicite?" Kurenai asked, frowning at Naruto. "And where did you get this many?"

"We...already have some," Hinata said as she brought out her Cura, Watera, Esuna, and Thundara magicite, blushing a bit. Sakura and Sasuke brought theirs out as well.

"Where I got them is a secret I would not like to tell, but I didn't steal them," Naruto said as he resealed the chest, and Taiki studied Naruto's face.

_'Why does something about him seem familiar? I feel like I know his lineage, but-' _Taiki's eyes widened as he finally noticed the crystal in Naruto's cheek. _'He's a...that means he's...I-I can't believe it. Th-The royal line of the Lilty Kingdom is still alive! He's the heir to the throne! The leaders have to be notified of this!'_

Naruto frowned at Taiki's expression. "What is it, Professor?"

Taiki snapped out of his thoughts and said, "It's nothing important." Naruto, Hinata, and the Jonin frowned. They could tell he was lying, but dropped it.

"Alright," Kakashi said, pocketing the magicite, "we will have to hit the monsters hard and fast. We'll start with the Tonberries an Tonberry Queen. Kurenai, think you can get enough time to place a Genjutsu on at least one of the King Behemoths to make it attack the others?" Kurenai nodded. "Do it. We'll let them attack each other until the one under the Genjutsu dies, then blitzkrieg the remaining King Behemoths one at a time unless necessary. When the King Behemoths are dead, we'll wake up the Iron Giant and blitzkrieg it. Naruto, was there a miasma stream?"

"Yes, but we have to kill all the monsters first."

"Alright. Professor, I think it's best you stay in the tunnel right now. I don't want you getting hurt."

Taiki was about to protest, but nodded.

"Let's go," Kakashi said, walking forward with the other shinobi while Taiki walked behind them, his left hand in his bag, clutching something. He stopped a few feet from the door, letting the shinobi take care of the monsters.

The shinobi entered the area with monsters to find a very spacious room, at least a quarter mile in width and length. The purple, cylindrical miasma stream floated in the center of the room. A Tonberry noticed the shinobi and let out a yell, alerting the other monsters to the threat. The Tonberry charged and attempted to stab Hinata, but Naruto grabbed its wrist and slammed a kunai into its head, killing it instantly. The Tonberry vanished instantly into a purple mist.

A King Behemoth started lumbering near, and the shinobi scattered, searching for the other Tonberry and Tonberry Queen. Kakashi saw the Queen, but lost sight of it when he was forced to dodge a club swing from a King Behemoth. Naruto tried to throw the Tonberry at the Tonberry Queen, but had to stop as another King Behemoth swung its club at him. He dropped the Tonberry, and instead of hitting him, the club hit the Tonberry, sending it flying into a wall and killing it.

'Well, that works, too,' Naruto thought. He then ducked as the King Behemoth swung at him again. He jumped up and slammed a Gravity-infused fist into the King Behemoth's jaw. The King Behemoth staggered back before grabbing him with its free hand, and threw him towards another, which swung its club at him. Naruto used his gravity powers to stop just outside the radius of the swing. Kurenai ensnared one of the King Behemoths in a Genjutsu, and one started lumbering towards another, its club raised. Once it got close enough it swung its club at the other one's head, making the other attack it.

Hinata and Shino found the Tonberry Queen again and Shino surrounded it with his insects as Hinata used Juuken to disable it. She then grabbed her Watera magicite and cast the spell at the monster. Water appeared from every angle around the Tonberry Queen and started crushing it for several seconds, leaving the Tonberry Queen badly injured. Kiba then decided to try his Fira magicite, and shot a fireball at it, killing it.

The shinobi regrouped and looked at the two fighting King Behemoths, both of which somewhat injured at that point.

"Wait, where's the third one?" Naruto asked before looking towards the entrance to find the last one trying to reach Taiki. The key word was trying, as its arm couldn't fit into the doorway. "Figures."

"I'll get its attention," Sasuke said before running off and launching a Fire jutsu at it. "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" The fireball hit the King Behemoth right in its face, and the monster turned to Sasuke, who paled and thought, _'Oh crap.'_ Sasuke dodged the club swing from the angry monster, then flew through hand signs and said, "Fire Style: Flame Wall Jutsu!" He then blew towards the ground and created a wall of fire between him and his opponent as Kakashi lifter his headband and started charging a Lightning Blade. The King Behemoth stepped through the wall of fire with ease, much to Sasuke's dismay. Kakashi then charged the monster and stabbed the monster in the eye, killing it. The monster dissipated as the King Behemoth that was under the Genjutsu received a blow to the head, killing it as well.

Naruto pulled out the Ultima magicite and started charging it. Before the King Behemoth could take more than two steps, a white sphere of energy appeared in front of his face as Naruto said, "This is the greatest of Light spells. Ultima!" The sphere exploded, killing the monster and sending everyone flying back thirty feet. The shinobi twisted in midair and landed upright, though Naruto fell to his knees, panting in exhaustion from using an overpowered Ultima spell.

"Naruto-kun, are you okay?" Hinata asked as she helped him up.

"I'll be fine," Naruto said as he wobbled a bit. "I think I just overpowered Ultima a bit."

_'A _bit_?' _Amidatelion asked in his mind, clearly angry at Naruto. _'That Ultima you cast had _double_ the amount of power it should have had! Do you have any idea what that can do to someone?'_

_'No.'_

_'It can kill you if you do that again right now! When you get back to the village, you will put that magicite back until I think you are ready to use it,'_ Amidatelion ordered.

_'I'm not arguing,'_ Naruto thought. _'That was too powerful.'_ He looked up and said, "I can wake up the Iron Giant, but then I'll have to rest for a few seconds. You'll have to kill it without me." He didn't give anyone a chance to argue, and spun the cog on the Iron Giant's back, waking it up.

The Iron Giant roared as it picked up the sword next to it and advanced on the shinobi, who moved out of the way. Hinata landed at the entrance and set Naruto down, then leaped back into the fight hesitantly after Naruto said he'd be okay. The Iron Giant swung its sword at Kiba, who ducked, and the other shinobi struck with their best jutsu at the same time, severely hurting it, but also making it angry. It roared again, this time swinging its sword in a complete circle, nearly hitting Sakura, who thought, 'That was way too close.' Kakashi then launched a dragon made of fire at the monster, which killed it.

Hinata wasted no time and rushed back to Naruto. "Are you feeling better?" she asked as she helped him up

"I haven't fully recovered yet, but I'll be fine," Naruto said as his strength returned.

"I hope so," Taiki said. "I don't want anyone to kill themselves in this place." As he said this, he cast a sideways glance at Naruto. _'That was purely foolish, overpowering that Ultima spell.'_

"Let's continue on, shall we?" Kakashi asked, though he was worried about Naruto, too.

"Sure," everyone responded, and Naruto, walking over to the miasma stream with Hinata's help, closed it with his powers. A red crystal-like object shaped like a heart fell from the stream.

"What is that?" Kiba asked, walking towards it, but Naruto brought it over with his powers.

Taiki gasped and said, "This is a Myrrh fragment. I don't know much about them, due to the lack of information on them, but they are supposed to make a person stronger. I don't know how it's done, though. I think the physically weakest of you should take it."

"You don't want to study it?" Sakura asked, thinking that he could be wasting a valuable opportunity.

"I'm an archaeologist, not a scientist," Taiki said, shaking his head. "And I don't know anyone who could study them effectively."

"I think Sakura should get it," Naruto said.

"Why Sakura?" Kiba asked, confused that he didn't say Hinata should get it.

"Well, no offense to Sakura, but physically, she is the weakest ninja here."

"Are you sure?" Sakura asked, looking at the Myrrh fragment.

"Positive," Naruto said, floating it over to her.

After a moment's hesitation, she grabbed it, and the fragment immediately absorbed itself into her. Sakura jerked back a bit and looked at her hands.

"So that's how it's done," Taiki said, then noticed something on the wall on the opposite side of the entrance. "Whoa," he said, walking over to it.

The shinobi looked at what he saw, and gasped. On the wall was an enormous mural. On the left side were two crystals. One looked like an inversed triangle and the other looked like the Lilty tribe symbol, with Layle to their right, facing away from them. He didn't look the same, however. His face had more crystal on it, and his eyes seemed to glow bright blue. Parts of his body and clothes were crystal as well, with his hands made entirely of crystal and the sleeves of his coat mostly encased in crystal. The clasp of his jacket was also crystal. Crystals created lines down his pants to the board made of crystal that enclosed his right foot, making it look like he was surfing. A crystal floated next to the one on his cheek, with a wing of energy emanating from it.

On the right side was a Lilty with his body encased in red crystal from the waist down. He had glowing red eyes, and his hair was braided into three ponytails starting at the same spot on his head. Parts of his body were also crystal, most notably his right arm from the elbow down. He seemed to be standing on a giant, robotic-like head with a red crystal extending from the forehead, with him attached to the crystal.

_'My first fight in Hyper Mode,' _Layle said, looking at the mural through Naruto's eyes.

_'Hyper Mode?' _Naruto asked mentally.

_'Hyper Mode is the state where a Crystal Bearer has more of his or her body become crystal, and possesses more power than ever. But the only way to enter Hyper Mode the first time is to have a crystal reactor near them and pour a lot of power into his or her crystal or for the Bearer to feel intense emotion, like anger and rage. For me, it was both. But a Bearer can stay in Hyper Mode for only five minutes when they first start, and when they leave Hyper Mode, they are extremely exhausted,' _Layle explained.

"What is this mural about?" Sakura asked, then noticed a plaque below with two people etched into the stone, one on each side. Two more people were etched into the stone below the plaque. "Look," she said, pointing to them.

Taiki walked over to the words on the wall. "This writing...it's an incredibly ancient language, from the time of the four tribes."

"Can you read it?" Shino asked.

"Yes. _'This mural was made to remember the greatest Crystal Bearer, Layle Sol Alfitaria, the husband of the third ruler of the Lilty Kingdom, Queen Althea Sol Alfitaria, and High Commander of the Royal Army. He valiantly fought to protect tribal unity, even going so far as to seemingly become a criminal and restore the Yuke's Tribal Crystal. But his fugitive status was placed on him by the previous High Commander, Jegran, who tried to kill him multiple times in fear of his powers. Jegran falsely accused him of stealing one of the three Crystal Idols, and ordered him to be killed. Layle's friends Keiss and Belle, pictured below and two Selkies, had proved that he was innocent, and Jegran was revealed to be a Crystal Bearer with the power to crystallize people, animals, and monsters. Jegran had also turned the current king of the Lilty Kingdom into crystal, effectively killing him. This mural is to commemorate Layle for his bravery and honor in protecting the Lilty kingdom, as well as the bravery of his friends and wife. Amidatelion, the Yuke pictured to the left who had taken the first steps to restore his Tribal Crystal, sacrificed himself to save Layle when Jegran attempted to crystallize him, instead diverting the traitor's strike to himself. As the Yuke Crystal was being restored, Althea protected the Lilty Crystal with her own powers as a Crystal Bearer from a doomsday spell cast by the Yukes during the Great War a thousand years before, unknowingly buying time for the Yukes to cast spells to counter the doomsday spell. Amidatelion knew that the doomsday spell would reactivate when the Yuke Crystal was restored, and made measures to prevent it from destroying the Lilty Crystal. This plaque is to be a reminder for all who see this to remember brave people who fought to protect the world. May their examples show others the path they should take.'_"

"That's what it's for? To remind others what some people did a long time ago?" Kiba asked disbelievingly, then snorted. "Man, this was a waste of- whoa!" He didn't finish his statement as Naruto performed a leg sweep and knocked Kiba down, then grabbed him by the throat, his eyes full of rage. "Naruto, what-"

"Listen well, Kiba. I will not take you insulting them. Don't you dare say this was a waste of time. They put their lives on the line-one even sacrificed his life-to save others. So don't you dare insult them, got it?" Naruto nearly yelled at him.

Kiba started sweating at the coldness in Naruto's eyes and felt himself shaking as he said, "G-Got it. S-sorry."

Naruto let go of Kiba regaining control of his temper. He noticed all the others staring at him. "What?"

"Nothing," everyone except Taiki said, knowing that Naruto was right in telling Kiba off, even if he was a bit forceful.

Taiki looked from Naruto to the Layle on the mural. "You know, there is something about this that makes me think you have some connection to Layle, Naruto."

"What could that be?" Naruto asked nonchalantly, though on the inside he was cautious.

"The fact that you have a crystal in the exact same spot Layle had his, and that you have control over gravity. Not to mention the magicite. Don't you think that's a bit strange, Naruto Uzumaki? Or should I say, Naruto Sol Alfitaria?"

Naruto frowned as everyone who didn't know about his ancestors gasped in shock and stared at him, then Layle, then back to Naruto with wide eyes, though Shino only visible shock was his raised eyebrows.

"N-Naruto? Is that true?" Sakura asked. Sasuke was too shocked to do anything but stare at him, as were Kiba and Kurenai.

Naruto sighed and said, "Yes. It's true. Layle is my ancestor, and so is Althea."

The others, except Kakashi, Taiki, and Hinata, stared at him even more.

Naruto scratched the back of his head in embarrassment. "Look, I don't think this is a good place to talk about this, though why did you even bring it up, Professor?"

Taiki shrugged. "I just want to get the facts straight."

Kakashi cleared his throat, bringing everyone back to reality. "As interesting as this is, I think we are supposed to be surveying the ruins, if I remember correctly."

"Right," Taiki said. "There may be another room or passageway connected to this room." He leaned against the wall, next to Amidatelion's portrait. "We should-whoa!" He fell back, disappearing from sight. Then his head popped out of the wall. "Okay, I didn't expect to find it like that, but I guess we can continue."

The shinobi walked over to the spot in the wall and Kakashi felt the wall until he felt the edges of the entrance, and, careful not to damage the mural and portrait, marked the edges so it would be easier to enter. "Let's go," Kakashi said. Everyone entered, though Naruto looked at the mural one last time before he entered.

They entered the corridor and walked in silence for about an hour until they reached what looked like a fallen city.

"Ruins of a city?" Taiki asked. "Doesn't look like Lilty, Clavat, or Selkie culture." He walked forward, looking at the architecture. They stood on a bridge to the entryway, on which stood four statues. The closest one on the left was of a thin person wearing armor that looked like a second skin. The second, in clockwise order, was a hooded person wearing a cloak, though the face was carved in. The third was a man with his left hand to his chest, looking slightly up. The last was of another armored person, though this one's armor was more bulky, raising an axe slightly.

"Professor, be careful," Kakashi said, walking up to him. "There could be traps."

Taiki stopped and said, "You could be right." He looked down and saw writing etched into the stone. "Look at this," he said, crouching down.

"An inscription?" Kakashi asked, crouching as well as the others walked up.

"Can you read it?" Sakura asked.

Taiki shook his head. "It's not the same writing as the one on the mural."

Naruto looked at it for a second, then his head throbbed. Hard. "Agh!" he muttered, clutching his head as the pain increased.

"Naruto, what's wrong?" Kakashi asked, looking at his student. _'Did some miasma get into his system?'_

Naruto didn't respond immediately, as the pain was spreading to the rest of his body. He fell to his knees, saying, "M-my body...AGH!" The crystal in his cheek flared, and the pain ended. Naruto placed his hands on the ground to prevent his face from hitting it as he gasped for breath.

"A-are you okay, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked, helping him up.

Naruto shakily replied, "Y-yeah, I think so. What the heck just happened?"

Everyone except Taiki shrugged, as none of them had any clue. Taiki said, "Perhaps there is something here that your body responded to. Though I have no clue as to what can do that."

"Whatever it is, I can feel its power from here," Naruto said as he sensed whatever it was on the other side of the fallen city. Then frowned. _'How can I sense it? I didn't sense it before the pain started, but I could after. Did the thing that caused the pain give me that ability?'_

"How?" Kiba asked.

"I don't know. But if it's a living being, I don't want to mess with it."

Everyone nodded, agreeing that they didn't want to fight something that could cause pain from that far away.

Naruto looked at the inscription, and was surprised that he could actually read it. "What the heck?" he thought out loud.

"What is it?" Kakashi asked, keeping an eye out for a hint of a miasma stream appearing, just in case.

"I can read the inscription now," Naruto said, sounding confused.

Everyone raised an eyebrow.

"Read it then," Taiki said, excited, as he pulled out a notepad to write down the translation.

Naruto read, "_'In the beginning there were the Four Crystals, and together they formed one principle. Thus the world was created.' _A creation myth..." He trailed off his interruption, and Taiki nodded. "_'The Four Crystals next created humanity in their own image, and presided over their destinies. Thus the Four Tribes were born: Lilty, Clavat, Selkie, and we...'_"

He didn't finish, as the word, statues, and most of the floor on which the statues stood vanished. Unluckily for Sasuke, he was standing on the part that did. "AAAHH!" Sasuke started to yell as he fell, but Naruto grabbed his hand before he fell too far.

"Gotcha," Naruto said as he pulled him up.

"Thanks," Sasuke said. He looked at the ruins, which were inaccessible now to all but ninjas. "These ruins must be important, if that was a trap."

"I don't think it was. The ruins must be unstable," Naruto said, looking at some floating blocks. "I think it has to be Yuke culture though, or at least ancient Yuke culture."

"Should we continue exploring the ruins?" Sakura asked, peering into the void below them.

"No," Kakashi said. "Unfortunately, we cannot continue until we have a much safer way to cross that chasm. We have to turn back."

Taiki looked upset that the investigation of the ruins would be put on hold, but didn't argue.

"Let's head back into the tunnel and rest for a while, then we can head back," Kakashi said, glancing at Naruto. The other ninja got the message, and agreed.

They headed back into the tunnel and, after a few minutes of walking, sat down to rest. Hinata, who had been supporting a still-recovering Naruto, helped the latter sit down.

"How are you feeling?" she asked him as she sat next to him, looking at her fiance in concern.

"I'm fine," Naruto said, though it was a partial lie. He was feeling better, but he still wasn't at a hundred percent. He didn't want to make her worry.

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei, how long are we going to rest?" Sakura asked.

Kakashi looked at Kurenai, who shrugged. "I think we should rest for about an hour before we head back. Though that miasma stream could be reopened by that time."

"We have to fight those things again?" Kiba asked, paling at the thought of it.

"Maybe, Kiba," Kakashi said. "But if the miasma stream has opened again, maybe Kurenai could put a Genjutsu on all of them to get them fight each other, then take out the Iron Giant and whatever's remaining."

"But if we are lucky we will not have to fight them," Shino said. "I read somewhere that miasma streams that spawn stronger monsters take longer to reopen. So it is most likely that we will not have to fight them."

Kiba sighed in relief.

After an hour of rest, the group started moving again, and Naruto had fully recovered from whatever happened at the ruins of the city. Luckily, they didn't have to fight the monsters again, and crossed the room with no problem. They didn't have any other problems, and Naruto asked everyone he lent magicite to to return them, and resealed his magicite after he got them back.

They exited the ruins and were about to head to the capital to report to the Daimyo, but discovered that night had fallen. Instead of reporting to the Daimyo, they stayed at a hotel and reported to him in the morning. The meeting was uneventful, and the Daimyo dismissed them.

The shinobi headed back to Konoha, and signed in at the gates before heading to the Hokage Tower. They entered the Hokage's office and Hiruzen, who looked to be upset by something, looked up.

"Ah, you're back," he said. "I thought you would not return until tomorrow. Unless something happened?"

"Yes, Lord Hokage," Kakashi said, before launching into his explanation, leaving nothing out. Hiruzen was upset that Naruto's ancestry was revealed to the rest of Team Eight, and made them swear not to say anything until it was made public knowledge. They agreed, and Kakashi said, "That's all there is to say, Lord Hokage."

"Very well. Kakashi, Kurenai, I want a report from both of you by noon tomorrow. Anyone who doesn't have anything else to talk about may leave."

Team Eight minus Hinata left, and Kakashi waited until the door closed to start speaking. "Lord Hokage, earlier yesterday, when I arrived at my team's meeting spot I learned that Sakura and Sasuke found out something about Naruto."

Hiruzen looked at Kakashi. "Which is..?"

"I would rather there were less ears," Kakashi said, glancing at Hinata.

Naruto spoke up. "Hinata already knows about my parents, Kakashi-sensei."

Kakashi looked at Hinata, shocked. Hiruzen however, looked at Sasuke and Sakura with a raised eyebrow. "Sasuke, Sakura, if you would explain how you found out?"

The two explained, though they unforunately couldn't leave out Naruto and Hinata's engagement.

"I see," Hiruzen said, leaning back. "None of you, except Naruto, are allowed to say anything about these subjects until they become public knowledge. Understand?"

"Yes, Lord Hokage," everyone responded, then the Hokage dismissed them.

The four left the building then went their own ways, and each couldn't help but get the feeling that things were just getting started.

0o0o0o0o0

**Chapter's done! You know what to do. Review, or risk Naruto sicking Bahamut, Shiva, or Ifrit on you! Flamers will get all three!**

**EDIT: Found a continuity error, and fixed it.**


	6. Before the Exams

**A/N: Okay, I'm back with the next installment of DOTGB! I won't be able to update as frequently, as college will be starting up again. Expect my update schedule to be erratic. Hope you all like it!**

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto and Hinata walked through Konoha, talking about nothing in particular, until Naruto sensed someone behind him. He spun around, flipped over a square box with a rock pattern and eye holes with his gravity powers, and said, "One, a rock does not have perfect sides or eye holes; two, what are you doing here; and three, nice goggles."

Standing in front of the flipped box were two boys and a girl. One boy had spiky brown hair similar to Naruto's, brown eyes, and was wearing a yellow shirt with the Konoha leaf on the front, a blue scarf, and grey shorts. The other boy had light brown hair, a runny nose, and was wearing a dark blue jacket, grey pants, and glasses. The girl had orange hair in two high pony tails, light green eyes, and was wearing a red yest over a light green shirt and grey shorts as well. The spiky-haired boy spoke up. "You said you would play ninja with us today, boss. And what's with the wardrobe change?"

Naruto looked shocked. "Was that today? Sorry, Konohamaru, but I've been really busy. Maybe tomorrow, and I'll even teach you some things to make up for it. As for the clothes, I've started to take my career as a ninja seriously."

Konohamaru said, "But you promised Moegi, Udon, and me that you'd play with us today. Why tomorrow?"

"Wow, a ninja playing ninja," Sakura said, walking up with a slightly dejected look on her face.

"Got rejected again, huh?" Naruto asked, putting a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Sakura sighed and nodded. But before she could say anything Udon asked, "Is she your girlfriend?" He was pointing at Sakura.

Naruto and Sakura both shouted, "NO!"

Konohamaru snorted and said, "Boss can do better than her. I mean, look at her. She has no chest."

Naruto and Hinata's eyes widened as Sakura stiffened. Naruto shook his head as he said, "Konohamaru, wrong thing to say to her."

"Huh?" Konohamaru asked, then he saw the expression on Sakura's face as she cracked her knuckles, and he understood. "Oh. RUN, GUYS!"

Konohamaru, Udon, Moegi started running as Sakura chased them. Naruto and Hinata sighed and ran after them so they could stop Sakura from killing Konohamaru. They both knew the Hokage would be pissed if someone killed his grandson.

Konohamaru was so busy trying to get away from the pink-haired girl, he didn't see someone in front of him until he ran into him and fell down.

"Ow! That hurt, brat!" the guy said as he picked Konohamaru up. He was wearing a black bodysuit with a hood covering his hair and a red and yellow circle on the front, black fingerless gloves, and black shinobi sandals. On his back was a wrapped package as big as him. On his hood was a shinobi headband with a rectangle over an hourglass as the symbol.

"Kankuro, put him down! You're just going to get in trouble later," a blond female with her hair in four short ponytails in the back said next to the boy now known as Kankuro. She wore a light purple battle dress that went to her knees over a mesh shirt and mesh leggings. Hanging around her neck was a shinobi headband with the same symbol as Kankuro's.

"Relax, Temari. It'll be a while before 'he' shows up, so I can at least have some fun," Kankuro said, raising a fist to strike Konohamaru.

"Ugh, fine. I'm not a part of this," Temari said.

Naruto pulsed out a chakra wave, getting Temari and Kankuro's attention. "Put him down right now, or I will make you."

"What can you do, you snot-nosed brat? Or are you going to make that pale-eyed weakling next to you do it?" Kankuro taunted, making both Naruto and Hinata's eyes twitch in anger at the insults thrown at each other.

Sakura and Sasuke, who was hiding in a tree nearby, thought, _'He's going to regret that.'_

Naruto rushed at Kankuro, who sent a thread of chakra at Naruto's feet to trip him. Naruto noticed it and jumped, flipping and landing on Kankuro's chest, making him drop Konohamaru as he fell to the ground. Naruto caught Konohamaru before he hit the ground and jumped off Kankuro, landing at his starting position, then put down Konohamaru. Time from start to finish: 3.5 seconds.

"Boss, that was awesome! Can you show me how to do that?" Konohamaru shouted.

"Not now. When you get your reflexes up, I'll show you," Naruto said, smiling. He turned to Kankuro and said, "And what have you learned from this?"

Kankuro glared as he got up. "I really hate punks like you." He reached for the package on his back, but stopped as a rock thrown by Sasuke hit his hand.

Sasuke asked as he tossed a rock in his left hand up a few times, "What are you Sand ninja doing in our village?"

_'Whoa, local hottie! But the blond looks cuter,' _Temari thought as she looked at Sasuke and Naruto.

"That's it! You're really starting to piss me off!" Kankuro said as he pulled off the package on his back.

"Kankuro! You're not supposed to use the Crow!" Temari said. "You're gonna get it as it is!"

Naruto sensed someone hanging behind Sasuke and said, "I don't think your friend hanging like a bat behind Sasuke likes what you're doing." He pointed to a branch behind Sasuke to emphasize.

Sure enough, someone was there. He looked to be about the same age as the rookies. He had red spiky hair similar to Naruto's, sea-green eyes, black rings around his eyes, and the kanji for 'love' in red on the left side of his forehead. He wore a black short-sleeved body suit that went slightly past his knees with a mesh shirt under it, white straps wrapped around his torso, and a large brown strap going from his left shoulder to his right hip that had his headband tied on it. On his back hanging from his white straps was a gourd as tall as his torso. "Kankuro, you're an embarrassment to our village," he said. "Have you forgotten why we're here?"

"B-but, Gaara, they started it!" Kankuro protested, his eyes showing fear and worry.

"Shut up...or I'll kill you," the boy now known as Gaara said.

_'Takeshi, this aura...' _Naruto thought as he sensed the aura Gaara emanated.

_'Yeah, no doubt about it,' _Takeshi said. _'Careful, Naruto, he's a Jinchuriki, just like you. From the smell of tanuki, the demon sealed in him must be Shukaku, old One-Tail. He controls sand. Something has to be wrong with the seal, though. He looks like an insomniac.'_

Gaara turned to Sasuke and said, "I'm sorry about their behavior." _'That black-haired kid nailed Kankuro with a rock. That took skill. And that blond kid knocked Kankuro down in three seconds. And that blue thing on his cheek... Interesting.' _He then disappeared in a swirl of sand and reappeared between Kankuro and Temari. "I know we're a week early, but we didn't come here to play around."

"S-sorry," Kankuro said.

"I'm sorry too, I should have stopped him," Temari said.

"Let's go," Gaara said, turning around.

"Wait!" Sakura said. "You three are from the Hidden Sand Village, right? Our villages may be allied, but according to our treaty you can't cross our border without authorization. So why are you here?"

"Haven't you heard?" Temari asked as Sasuke landed next to Naruto. "Yes, we're Genin from the Hidden Sand. We're here to take the Chunin Exams."

Naruto and Hinata both raised eyebrows. "The Chunin Exams?" Naruto asked. "Oh, I remember now. They take place every six months to see who is promoted from Genin to Chunin among all the hidden villages."

"Well, I'm glad I don't have to explain it," Temari said.

"What are your names?" Gaara asked. "You with the black hair, and the blond."

"Sasuke Uchiha," Sasuke replied.

"Naruto Uzumaki, and you are?" Naruto replied.

"Gaara no Sabaku," Gaara said. He turned around and said, "Temari, Kankuro, we're leaving."

The three left with pure speed as they went who-knows-where.

"This'll be interesting," Naruto said, his arms crossed in thought.

"Definitely," Sasuke said, nodding. "How did you sense Gaara there?"

"Like how everyone emits a chakra presence, they also emit a magical presence," Naruto explained. "The magical presence a person emits can be controlled, much like his or her chakra presence, but the way to do so is different. Also, a person's magical presence shifts slightly for whatever emotion he or she is feeling."

"So, you sensed his magical presence," Sasuke said. "Was it because of...?"

"I think it does have to do with what happened on our last mission."

Konohamaru spoke up. "What are you talking about, boss?"

"Sorry, Konohamaru, can't talk about it," Naruto said. "Anyway, Hinata and I have to go. Later."

"Oh, Naruto, wait a second," Sakura said, pulling out a scroll on medical jutsu. "Here. I've memorized its contents."

"Okay, I'll lend you the next one after Hina's done with it," Naruto said, taking the scroll.

Naruto and Hinata walked off with Hinata wrapping her arm around Naruto's and resting her head on his shoulder.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto and Hinata entered the library in their house and placed the scroll Sakura gave back in its spot. Hinata picked up the one next to it and sat down at one of the tables to read it while Naruto looked for a Wind jutsu scroll. Halfway to the Wind jutsu section he bumped into a small pedestal that had a vase on it, similar to the one on the other side of the room that hid the blood seal for the hidden staircase. He grabbed the vase to prevent it from falling, and noticed something behind it. He put the vase on a table near him and looked at the wall to find that the wall looked off. He tried to touch it, but instead of his hand touching it, it passed right through the wall!

"Naruto-kun? Are you okay?" Hinata asked, looking up from her scroll.

"I'm fine, Hinata-chan," Naruto replied, looking at the wall. He picked up the pedestal with his powers and moved it so that he could get into the alcove, then got closer to the wall. He stuck his hand in, this time trying to find the wall's boundaries. He found that the fake wall was only big enough to fit his arm in.

"What are you doing?" Hinata asked as she walked up to see Naruto's arm going through the wall. "Naruto-kun?"

"I think I found something, Hina-chan," Naruto replied as he felt inside the false wall. His hand brushed against something, and he grabbed it. He pulled it out to find that it was a box big enough to hold three scrolls. He opened it to find the said amount of scrolls and pulled one out. He replaced the vase and the pedestal and sat down at the table to find out what was in the scroll. He tried opening it, but couldn't. Looking at it, he saw a blood seal on it. He bit his thumb and smeared the blood on it, opening the scroll. He unfurled it more to read its contents, and was instantly glad he sat down, as he started shaking in excitement. "H-Hinata-chan! Y-you won't believe what jutsu this scroll contains!"

"What is it?" Hinata asked as she looked over his shoulder. Her mouth dropped slightly in shock. "N-Naruto-kun, isn't this...?"

"It is! It's one of my dad's signature jutsu, the Rasengan! Th-this is incredible!"

"D-do you think one of th-the other scrolls h-has the Flying Thunder God technique that earned your father his nickname as The Yellow Flash?" Hinata asked.

"Maybe," Naruto said, furling the scroll back up and setting it back in the box. He picked up the one in the back and, upon opening it, promptly fainted.

"N-Naruto-kun!" Hinata shouted, worried. She sent chakra into him to wake him up, and asked as he sat up slowly, "A-are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, Hinata-hime," Naruto said, looking at the scroll. "Th-this is the Flying Thunder God technique. I-I can't believe that I found the scrolls holding his two most famous jutsu!"

"N-Naruto, don't go overboard. The Flying Thunder God is an S-Rank space-time ninjutsu, and the Rasengan is an A-rank jutsu."

"I know, but we can still work on the Rasengan, at least. I won't try to learn the other until I'm older.

"W-we?" Hinata asked.

Naruto turned to her and smiled kindly. "Yes, we, Hina-hime. I want you to learn it as well."

"B-but-"

Naruto silenced her protest by kissing her. "It's okay, Hina-hime. It's really just chakra control. You can learn it."

"But it's your heritage. I don't want to make you feel that it's necessary for me to learn it because we're engaged."

Naruto kissed her again. "That's not why I want you to learn it. It's because I feel you can learn it. Don't doubt yourself, okay?"

"Okay," Hinata said, before kissing Naruto, wrapping her arms around his neck. They stayed like that for a few moments before pulling back, smiling at each other.

"Now, how about we start?" Naruto asked. Hinata nodded, determined not to disappoint him.

"Okay," Naruto said, turning to the scroll, "it looks like there are three stages to learn it. Hmmm." He created a Shadow Clone, which left the house to get a few things. "The scroll says for the first step, we have to use only our chakra to pop a balloon filled with water by rotating it. How do we do that?"

"M-maybe Kakashi-sensei knows," Hinata suggested.

"Yeah, maybe," Naruto said before creating a clone to go get his perverted teacher. "Guess we have to wait until my clones get back."

As they waited, Naruto and Hinata placed the box with the Flying Thunder God technique in it and the other scroll, which turned out to be a letter from Naruto's mother, Kushina Uzumaki-Namikaze, telling him to be strong, and to find a girl when he was older. The wait wasn't long, as the clone sent to get Kakashi arrived thirty minutes later, while the other clone arrived five minutes after that.

"Okay, Naruto, why did you have a clone drag me here?" Kakashi asked, looking at his sensei's son as they stood in the backyard.

"I found the scroll that contained details on the Rasengan, and wanted to start learning it with Hinata. We both think you might know it."

Kakashi's visible eye widened before he said, "I do know it, but you do realize this is an A-Rank ninjutsu that uses spatial manipulation, right?"

"Yes, we know," Hinata said. "We understand that spatial manipulation requires us to use our chakra to manipulate the space it occupies without use of hand signs, and the basics of it."

Kakashi sighed and said, "I guess I have to show you it so you understand. Be patient, because I haven't done this in a while." He raised his right hand, palm facing upwards, and curled his fingers slightly. After a few seconds, a blue sphere formed in his hand. The sphere's diameter was the same length as his palm, and in the sphere were multiple strands of multicolored chakra, swirling in different directions over the same center.

Hinata activated her Byakugan to better understand it, and was surprised at the complexity of it. "W-wow, it's so complex."

Kakashi nodded, dismissing the Rasengan. "It is. It took sensei three years to master it."

"But he was the one creating it," Naruto said. "Wouldn't it take longer to master a jutsu if you're creating it rather than learning it?"

"Yes, but what I'm trying to say is don't expect to master it in a month. If that's all you need me for...?"

"Yeah, it is. Thanks, sensei," Naruto said as he created a clone to escort Kakashi out.

"See you." With that, Kakashi left to do what he always did...read his perverted novels.

"Alright," Naruto said, picking up one of the water balloons he had his clone buy under a Transformation Jutsu, "what do you think, Hinata-chan?"

"W-well, it looked like he was using creating layers of chakra streams," Hinata said, picking up a balloon as well. "Maybe we should create a stream at the outermost edges of the water, then add streams until the balloon bursts?"

Naruto thought about it, then nodded. "That sounds like a good idea."

They cupped their hands over the balloons, and started on their strategy. After a few minutes, Naruto's balloon popped slightly and let out the water, while Hinata's started to deform as if someone was trying to punch her way out of it, then shredded, sending paper shrapnel flying through the backyard.

"Dang, Hinata, you got it on your first try!" Naruto said, smiling in pride.

Hinata blushed and said, "It's not that big of a deal. I'm sure you'll do it on your next try."

Naruto picked up one of the other water balloons and said, "Let's find out, shall we?" He started swirling the water around with his chakra, then added a stream, then another, until the balloon shredded like Hinata's, but less violently. Naruto frowned. Something seemed off. But he couldn't figure it out.

_'Want me to help?' _Takeshi offered.

_'Sure,' _Naruto thought.

_'Okay, you were rotating the water to the left, but you could be a right rotation type, meaning your chakra coils rotate to the right, like a corkscrew.'_

_'How can I be sure I wasn't rotating the water fast enough?'_

_'Because you were. Put you hand on your head,' _Takeshi said, which Naruto did, confusing Hinata

"Naruto-kun, what is it?" she asked.

"Something seemed off when I shredded the balloon, and Takeshi is trying to help me find out what," Naruto replied.

_'Got it, Naruto. You are a right rotation type. Try it again, but this time rotate the water to the right,' _Takeshi said.

Naruto picked up a third balloon, and did what Takeshi recommended. This time, it shredded more violently than Hinata's.

"What was wrong, Naruto-kun?" Hinata asked.

"I was rotating the water to the left when I should have been rotating it to the right," Naruto explained. "I guess the Rasengan varies slightly between right-rotation types and left-rotation types."

"Maybe," Hinata said, picking up one of the hollow rubber balls that the transformed clone also bought. "What was the next step?"

Naruto looked at the scroll. "The second step is to add power, and shred the rubber ball."

They attempted to do just that, but all they could do was make a hole in them. They tried five more times before Hinata collapsed, her chakra exhausted.

"I-I can't do any more, Naruto-kun," Hinata said.

"It's okay, Hinata-chan," Naruto said, helping her up. "I think we can try again tomorrow. That sound good to you?"

Hinata nodded as Naruto created some clones to clean up and take the unused balloons inside the house as the real Naruto picked Hinata up bridal style, making her blush profusely, and walked to the kitchen. "Sit and rest. I'll make dinner tonight," Naruto said, placing her in a chair.

"Okay," Hinata said, watching Naruto get to work.

0o0o0o0o0

**One week later...**

Naruto and Hinata yawned as they woke up, stretching. They had mastered the second stage of the Rasengan two days ago, much to Kakashi's shock and annoyance. The last step involved combining the first two steps and containing them in a sphere the size of their individual palms for at least one minute. Naruto had managed 59.99 seconds yesterday, while Hinata lasted a minute before she needed to take a soldier pill to restore her chakra. Naruto then stopped her there, saying that they had effectively had mastered the Rasengan for now, and could work on increasing the time they could hold it later.

"I don't want to get up today," Hinata said. "I want to rest after that training we did yesterday."

"I know, hime, but we have team meetings today," Naruto said.

Hinata sighed and got up to take a shower while Naruto left to do the same. They met downstairs after they finished and started eating breakfast.

"Hinata, could you promise me something?" Naruto asked suddenly.

"What?"

"Promise me you won't use the Rasengan unless it's necessary."

"Of course, Naruto-kun," Hinata said, smiling at him.

"Thank you, Hinata-chan," Naruto said, smiling back. He noticed the time. "We should get going."

"Don't you mean, I should get going while you wait an hour before you head to your team's meeting spot to wait for your always late sensei?" Hinata asked.

Naruto laughed at her joke and said, "Nah, I don't want to sit in the house doing nothing for an hour."

"But you would rather stand at your meeting spot for an hour?"

"I'll just take a nap while I wait," Naruto said, then kissed her on the cheek.

Hinata frowned. "You did it wrong."

"Huh?" Naruto asked, before Hinata kissed him full on the lips.

Naruto smiled before kissing her back, wrapping his arms around her waist. After a few minutes, he pulled away and said, "We really do have to meet our teams, Hina-hime."

Hinata smiled and kissed him briefly. "I know. I just wanted a proper kiss. See you later, Naruto-kun."

"Okay, see you later, Hina-hime!" Naruto called after her as she left, before leaving as well.

When he arrived at his team's meeting spot, he saw Sasuke and Sakura standing there waiting for him and Kakashi. "Morning, Sasuke, Sakura," Naruto greeted.

"Morning," the two replied, then Sasuke asked, "You think Kakashi is going to nominate us for the Chunin Exams?"

"Maybe," Naruto said. "Well, we'll find out when he gets here." So the three waited, talking about what they could encounter in the Chunin Exams if they were nominated.

An hour later, Kakashi appeared and said, "Yo!"

"You're closer to being on time, sensei," Naruto said, his eyebrows raised.

"Well, I can be on time when I want to," Kakashi said, rubbing the back of his head. "Anyway, I have some news for you three. I have nominated you for the Chunin Exams." He pulled out three forms and handed them to his team. "You are to fill these out and turn them in to room 301 at the shinobi academy by noon tomorrow. You have the rest of the day off. See ya." He then disappeared in a swirl of leaves.

Sasuke and Sakura smirked at the thought of participating, but Naruto had a faraway look in his eyes. Sasuke, noticing this, asked, "What's wrong, Naruto?" Naruto didn't respond, so Sasuke yelled in his ear, "Yo! Earth to Naruto!"

Naruto snapped out of his daze and asked, "Huh? What did you say?"

Sakura giggled. "Thinking about a certain girl, Naruto?" Naruto blushed, as that was what he had been doing.

"S-so?"

"Nothing," Sakura said, giggling. "Anyway, what do you think? Should we participate?"

Naruto closed his eyes, thinking. 'Hmmm, maybe we should. It would be a good chance to see where we stand, and a chance to get stronger. But I don't want to go if one of my teammates doesn't want to.' He opened his eyes. "Sakura, how is your training with medical jutsu going?"

"Pretty good. I've asked medic nin to help me when they have time, and they've taught me a lot," Sakura explained. "I can heal up to cracked bones, but that's it."

Naruto nodded in understanding. "Hmm, I think we should participate."

"I agree. It will give us a good chance to see ninja from other countries in action, and give us a learning experience, even if we fail. It's a win-win situation," Sasuke said, putting in his own two ryo. "What do you think, Sakura?"

Sakura said, "Let's go for it. I want to see how well our training's going."

Naruto smiled. "Then we're in agreement. We'll participate. I didn't want to participate if either of you didn't either. We go as a team in full agreement, or not at all." Sasuke and Sakura nodded in agreement. "Hey, how about we find Hinata and go out to eat for lunch? My treat."

"Sure, if it's fine with Hinata," Sasuke said.

"Sure, but we should avoid going near my house," Sakura said. "Dad's a bit mad about something, and mom's trying to calm him down."

"Your dad tried to set up a marriage contract between us," Naruto explained. "I could tell that part of the reason he did that was for better social status, so I rejected his request."

Sakura gained a disgusted look. "I don't even like you like that!" she exclaimed. "Ohhh, I'm going to chew him out."

"That was the other reason I rejected it. You're like a sister to me, now that I think about it."

Sakura blushed in embarrassment. "Thanks, Naruto," she said, smiling at him.

Naruto smiled back.

"Naruto-kun!" a voice called, and Naruto turned toward it, smiling more. Hinata ran up to him, smiling widely.

"Hey, Hina-hime," Naruto said, hugging her. He let go, though he kept his arm around her shoulders, and asked, "Hey, do you mind if Sasuke and Sakura come with us for lunch?"

"I'm fine with it," Hinata said, still smiling. "Did your sensei nominate you three for the Chunin Exams?"

"Yeah, he did. Did yours?" Sakura asked.

"Yes," Hinata said. "Kurenai-sensei feels that we're ready for them. But I'm a bit worried about how we'll do." She looked down, pressing her fingers together in worry.

"You'll do fine, Hinata," Naruto said, squeezing her shoulders a bit. "You can do this. After all, you mastered that jutsu in a week. Not everyone can do that."

"What jutsu?" Sasuke asked.

"Sorry, Sakura, but I don't want to reveal it before the exams," Naruto said.

"I guess that's understandable," Sakura said. "Where should we eat?"

"Hmm, how about the Akimichi's barbecue restaurant?" Naruto asked.

"Sure, let's go," Sasuke said, and the four left for the restaurant, arriving an hour later.

They entered the restaurant and sat at a booth with a window view, careful not to touch the circular grill in the middle of the table. A waitress came up and said, "Hi, welcome to the Akimichi BBQ Palace. My name is Keira and how can I help you?"

"I'd like two orders of ribs," Sasuke said.

"One order of ribs for me," Sakura said.

"I'll have an order of ribs too," Hinata said.

"Same here," Naruto said, nodding.

Keira wrote down the four orders and asked, "Okay, anything to drink?"

"A large Pepsi for me," Sasuke said.

"I'll take a medium Coke Zero," Sakura said.

"A medium Sprite for me, please," Hinata said.

"I'll have a large Coke Zero," Naruto said.

"Okay, I'll be back with your drinks and orders soon," Keira said, walking off.

While they waited, the four friends talked about what was likely to be tested in the exams, noting their strengths and weaknesses.

As they talked, they didn't notice a platinum blond girl with her hair in a long ponytail and light blue eyes talking to her teammates a few booths away. She wore a purple sleeveless shirt that ended halfway to her stomach, combat wrappings on her torso to her knees, white arm sleeves that went from her wrists to her elbows, and a purple battle dress. Her Leaf headband was wrapped around her waist. Her name was Ino Yamanaka.

One of her teammates had his hair in a small bunch at the back of his head, making it look like a pineapple, and black eyes. He wore a grey vest with green lining over a mesh shirt and wore black pants that went to his knees. His head was laying on the table, giving the impression that he was asleep, which he was. His headband was tied to the left sleeve of his vest, near the shoulder. His name was Shikamaru Nara.

Ino's other teammate was a chubby brown-haired kid with brown eyes. He wore a green vest, a scarf around his neck, a shirt with the kanji for 'food' on it, and grey shorts. He had combat wrappings on his arms from the elbows to his hands. On his cheeks were swirl marks. He wore his headband on his head with the cloth wrapped around the sides and over the top of his head. His name was Choji Akimichi.

"I'm so glad we decide to participate in the Chunin Exams!" Ino said, squealing. "I can't wait to show Sakura how Sasuke is mine. What about you guys? Shikamaru, wake up!" She picked up her tongs for her BBQ and whacked Shikamaru with them, making him wake up.

"Ow! Troublesome woman. What was that for?" Shikamaru complained as he rubbed the top of his head.

"For not listening. Now what do you two think about the Chunin Exams?"

"I can't wait to see how we stack up," Choji said as he started eating his fifth order of ribs.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru answered, about to lay his head back down, but he stopped as he saw something that made him blink. _'Is that-? Whoa, it IS Naruto! With Hinata Hyuga! Troublesome, but I better not let Ino see them together.'_ But the Crystal Principle had other plans.

"What are you looking at, Shikamaru?" Ino asked, turning around to find what he was looking at. Her jaw dropped. "Who's the cute guy sitting with Hinata, Sakura, and Sasuke?" she asked her team, as she couldn't see the whisker marks on Naruto's cheeks.

Choji looked over. "Don't know, but something about him seems familiar." He frowned, trying to figure out what it was.

Shikamaru shrugged, trying not to show that he did know.

"Well, let's find out," Ino said, getting up and dragging her teammates over. _'No way am I letting anyone get between Naruto and Hinata! They would make a great couple.'_

"M-my food!" Choji whined, trying to grab the ribs.

"Save it."

"What a drag," Shikamaru said.

Naruto just finished speaking when Ino said, "Hey, Sasuke-kun! Miss me?" She wrapped her arms around the Uchiha's neck from behind him and stuck her head over his shoulder.

"Ino, let go of me," Sasuke said, looking at her in an annoyed manner.

"No way! You're mine, you hear me?" She glanced up and asked, "Who's your friend? Naruto not cut out to be a ninja after all?"

Shikamaru said, "Troublesome woman." He nodded at Naruto. "Hey, Naruto. Looks like you got rid of that orange jumpsuit. It was getting really-"

"Troublesome?" Naruto finished, smirking as he looked at his friend.

Ino blinked and almost yelled, "Wait, that's Naruto?"

"Obviously. Who else do we know with whisker marks on his cheeks?" Shikamaru asked rhetorically. Ino glared at him as she let go of Sasuke.

"So, Hinata, what are you doing here?" Ino asked.

Hinata blushed as she said, "I'm getting lunch with my boyfriend and his team." She leaned against Naruto, who blushed as well as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.

Ino's eyes nearly popped out of her head, as did Choji's and Shikamaru's. After all, she wasn't stuttering like she did back at the academy, and she just called Naruto her boyfriend! She may still be wearing the same grey hooded jacket she wore then, but she seemed like a different person now.

"Boyfriend? When did that happen?" Ino asked.

"About a month ago," Naruto answered. "I asked her out after we got back from our first C-Rank mission after we bumped into each other."

"Did you plan it?" Ino asked.

"No, it was spontaneous, but I don't regret it." As he said it, he kept the crystal on his right cheek hidden from view. He knew that Ino was a gossip queen, and would spread word about him being a Crystal Bearer quickly.

However, Shikamaru saw it, and paled. _'He's a Crystal Bearer. But if the crystal is on his right cheek, in the exact same spot that- Oh, you have _got_ to be kidding me.'_Shikamaru regained his composure quickly as he thought, _'Troublesome.'_

"Excuse me!" someone said behind Choji, and he moved so that Keira could pass by with the orders for Naruto and the others.

"Sorry, Keira," Choji said.

"It's fine, Choji," Keira replied. "Though I thought you would still be eating at your table."

"Oh, crap, it's probably gone by now!" Choji realized with wide eyes, making everyone laugh.

"Same old Choji," Naruto said, grinning.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: Okay, chapter's done! Hope you enjoyed it! Review please!**


	7. The First Exam

**A/N: I'm back! Hope you all like the chapter!**

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto yawned as he woke up, stretching his arms. Hinata mumbled something before wrapping her arms around him, still half-asleep. Naruto chuckled and said, "Hina-hime, we have to wake up. We have to take the Chunin Exams today, remember?"

Hinata sat straight up, her eyes wide. "We didn't oversleep, didn't we?" she asked before looking at the clock on her nightstand. She sighed in relief when she saw that they had five hours until the appointed time. "Oh, thank goodness. I don't want to be late."

"Neither do I, hime," Naruto added, kissing her forehead. "Let's get ready, shall we?"

They got out of bed and were about to head out the front door one hour later to gather their respective teammates. Hinata decided to get rid of her grey jacket that hid her body, and instead wore a dark blue long-sleeve shirt with a mess shirt under it and beige pants that went halfway between her knees and ankles.

_'Think you're prepared for this, Naruto?'_ Althea asked him.

_'Truthfully? I'm not sure,'_ Naruto replied. _'For some reason, I have this really strange uneasy feeling. I can't explain it.'_

_'It's probably just your instincts telling you to be careful,'_ Takeshi said, though he had the same feeling as well.

_'Maybe,'_ Naruto agreed, but couldn't help but think he was forgetting something.

Hinata noticed her fiance's troubled expression and asked, "Is something wrong?"

"Yeah, I just need to check something. Go on without me," Naruto said, turning around and heading to the library. Hinata looked confused, but decided to trust her fiance and left.

Naruto entered the library and walked to the hidden blood seal that hid the stairway to the magicite and wiped a bit of blood on it. He slid down the stairway, deciding to not waste time. Once at the storage room, he searched through the military magicite, thinking _'Where are they?'_ as he went.

_'What are you looking for?'_ Amidatelion asked.

_'Either a Raise or an Arise magicite,'_ Naruto responded. _'I'm not taking any chances if this bad feeling turns out to be real.'_

_'Raise and Arise?'_ Amidatelion asked, confused. _'Naruto, you must understand that those two spells have requirements in order to work, correct?'_

_'Yes,'_ Naruto said, still searching. _'Raise has to be cast on a dead person's body within an hour of the person's death, and it only heals the killing wound or removes whatever poison or venom killed him or her. Arise's time limit is thirty minutes, but it heals all the wounds instead of just the killing blow. And each person can only be revived with either spell only once. You can't cast Raise on a person that had Arise cast on him or her, or vice versa either.'_ He stopped as he saw two orange magicite and smiled briefly. _'There they are.'_ He picked them up and looked at them, then placed the one with one star, Raise, back in its place.

Naruto turned around and walked out of his house, sealing everything back up, and ran off to find his team.

0o0o0o0o0

Outside the academy...

Sasuke, who still had his black hair in his signature duck-butt shape, winced as he rubbed the cheek that some bowl-haired weirdo wearing a green jumpsuit named Rock Lee punched after challenging him to a match. He checked his watch and asked, "What is Naruto doing? He's almost late. And what the hell was up with that bowl-haired freak?"

Sakura, who decided to shorten her bubble-gum pink hair so that it only reached her shoulders, shrugged and said, "We still have three hours until the deadline. Maybe he had to do something. And that Rock Lee is a freak. Seriously, I will never go out with him, no matter how many times he'll ask."

"Maybe who had to do something?" asked the very blond they were talking about as he ran up. "Sorry about being late. I had to check something."

"It's okay," Sakura said, confused about the expression on her teammate's face, but decided not to ask.

"Where's Hinata?" Naruto asked, looking around.

"She and her team went on up," Sasuke said. "Now let's go."

The three Genin walked into the academy and started climbing the stairs to the third floor. On the second floor, they stopped when they saw a large crowd around a pair of doors being blocked by two Konoha Genin.

"Wait, we're on the second floor, right?" Naruto asked his team quietly, and they nodded. "So why are they crowding around the door?" It was then he noticed the sign above the door said '301' instead of '201.' _'Must be a way to weed out the weak teams,'_ Naruto realized, but before he could say anything, Sasuke spoke up.

"Hey! What are you doing with that pathetic excuse of a Genjutsu? We have business on the third floor. This is only the second floor."

Most of the Genin around the door looked confused as the ones blocking it frowned. "How did you know?" the one with a bandage across his nose asked.

Naruto facepalmed as he and everyone in his mind thought, _'Idiot.'_ "Like my teammate said, it was a weak Genjutsu. Also," he added as he raised a fist and bashed Sasuke on his head, "you moron! If you didn't say anything, there would have been less competition!" He pointed at the Genin blocking the door. "Those guys are here to weed out the weak teams!"

Sasuke 'hmph'ed but wasn't able to deny what Naruto said, and started walking away like most of the other Genin. Sakura and Naruto sighed but started to follow him.

One of the Genin that had been crowded in front of the doors called, "Hold up!" Sasuke, Sakura, and Naruto turned around to see a pale-eyed Konoha Genin with long brown hair walk up to them. He was wearing a beige jacket with dark blue shorts and had his headband on his forehead. His right arm was wrapped in combat wrappings. "What are your names? You two with the black and blond hair."

Naruto responded, "Naruto Uzumaki."

Sasuke smirked and said, "Sasuke Uchiha. But isn't it common courtesy to give your name first?"

The boy frowned at Naruto and said, "Neji Hyuga."

Naruto raised an eyebrow as he thought, 'So this guy is Hina-hime's cousin.'

Neji glanced at Naruto as he thought, _'So this is the weakling that Lord Hiashi wisely decided to have Hinata marry.'_

Naruto spoke up. "Sasuke, Sakura, we should go." His teammates nodded and they walked away from the Hyuga. Neji glared at Naruto's back before he gestured to his teammates and started walking to room 301 as well.

Outside room 301, Naruto grinned when he saw Hinata and her team. "Hey, Hinata," he said, wrapping an arm around her waist.

Hinata blushed before saying, "Hello, Naruto-kun." She laid her head on his shoulder as the two teams greeted each other and started to walk in the room. But Kakashi and Kurenai appeared in poofs of smoke in front of the doors.

Kakashi eye-smiled as he said, "Yo! I see all of you are here. That makes things easier."

"What do you mean?" Kiba asked.

"If either of your teams had a member missing," Kurenai explained, "we could not let you pass. But you don't have to worry, since all of you are here."

"Oh, before I forget, Naruto, Hinata, how are you two coming along with the third stage of that jutsu?" Kakashi asked, getting a confused look from everyone but the two Genin.

Naruto smiled. "We mastered it yesterday," he said, making Kakashi facevault.

Kakashi grumbled as he got up. "Dammit, Naruto, you and Hinata are making me look bad. It took me a month to master that, and it took you two a week."

Naruto scratched the back of his head as Hinata blushed in embarrassment. "Heh, sorry, sensei," Naruto said.

Kakashi sighed. "Well, anyway, you all are cleared to enter. Show them what you're made of!" With that, he vanished in a puff of smoke, Kurenai following him shortly after.

"What jutsu was Kakashi-sensei talking about?" Kiba asked Naruto and Hinata.

"Sorry, Kiba, but you'll have to find out," Naruto said before opening the doors and walking in with the others following.

Inside, they saw over a hundred Genin either sitting on or standing near desks, glaring at them. Naruto looked at their headbands, and noticed that Genin from all kinds of villages were entering.

"Why are they glaring at us?" Sasuke asked quietly.

"They are most likely upset that rookies are participating," Shino said, fixing his sunglasses. "You would be too if you worked hard to get here, and discovered that some rookies are also participating."

"True, but they shouldn't glare at us," Naruto said.

"I-I'm getting a little worried," Hinata whispered to her boyfriend.

"Don't be," Naruto said, comforting her.

"Hey, Sasuke!" a familiar voice practically shouted, and Sasuke frowned as he was glomped from behind. He looked behind him to see Ino.

"Ino, get off me," Sasuke deadpanned, his face showing that he did not want her hugging him.

"Troublesome," Shikamaru said as he and Choji walked up.

"Hey guys," Naruto greeted, then jerked his thumb at Ino. "I think you lost something."

Shikamaru chuckled. "At least she's getting better. What about the one on your team?"

"She's not much of a fangirl anymore," Naruto said.

To illustrate his point, Sakura walked over and twisted Ino's arms off Sasuke. "Ino-pig, stop being a fangirl and start acting like a kunoichi!" Sakura said, shaking her head.

"Maybe you should follow your own advice!" Ino retorted.

Before Sakura could explain that she did, a voice said, "Hey, you guys. Do us all a favor, and shut up" The rookies turned to see a Konoha Genin with silver hair tied in a small ponytail at the base of his neck wearing a white short-sleeved shirt with a purple sleeveless bodysuit over it and combat wraps around his waist. "You're all rookies, right? Fresh out of the academy? This isn't a game, you know! And here you are acting like brats!"

"Who asked you?" Ino asked, glaring at the Genin. "And who are you?"

"Name's Yakushi, Kabuto Yakushi," the Genin said. "Can't you sense the mood?" He jerked his thumb to the other Genin, who had intensified their glares.

Kiba, being the protective person he is, shouted, "What? You want some, come and get it!" He gulped as the Genin focused their killing intent at him.

Naruto shook his head and thought, _'Fool.'_ He stepped forward and said, "Alright, cool your jets. You should be ashamed you let a rookie get to you so easily."

The Genin, after a few seconds of consideration, lowered their KI. Some of them even hung their heads in shame.

Kabuto looked at Naruto. "Impressive. You even got the foreign ninja to back off." He then continued, "The rest of you remind me of what I was like during my first time here."

"So this isn't your first time?" Sakura asked.

"It's my seventh actually," Kabuto responded, making Naruto suspicious.

_'Seventh? The exams can't be that hard,'_ he thought.

_'I agree,'_ Layle said. _'Something about this guy seems off.'_

Naruto nodded mentally as Kabuto said, "You can consider yourselves lucky I'm in a giving mood. I have quite a bit of information about the exams in general."

"What about individuals?" Sasuke asked.

"That depends," Kabuto said, pulling out a deck of cards. One of the Genin in the crowd perked up at hearing that. "All of my information is here, hidden to all eyes but my own unless I channel chakra into them. Mind if I give you a rundown of the exams before you ask about anyone?"

"Fine," Sasuke said.

Naruto had no interest in hearing what Kabuto had to say, and instead whispered to Kiba, "Hey, could you check this guy's scent?" He knew Kiba's nose was 5,000 times more sensitive than other humans, and wanted him to check in case this guy was a traitor.

Confused, Kiba nodded and took a whiff, then wrinkled his nose. He exchanged glances with his dog Akamaru, who softly barked, signifying he got the same scent. "He smells of snake and blood, lots of it. Medicine, too."

Naruto and Hinata's eyes widened slightly as they remembered Takeshi's words. _"A man smelling of snakes and a Crystal Bearer with a red right arm attacked my mate and kit, and killed them."_

Naruto's eyes narrowed at Kabuto as the Genin in question said, "Shinobi villages from all over are participating in the exams, even a new village called Sound sent a team."

"Just one? They must really be weak," Ino said.

"No, they're new. I wouldn't underestimate the team they sent, though," Kabuto said.

"Can I get information on individuals now?" Sasuke asked.

"Sure, who do you want?" Kabuto asked, squatting.

"Gaara from the Hidden Sand and Rock Lee from Konoha," Sasuke said.

"And Naruto Uzumaki," Neji said, walking up with a brown-haired, brown-eyed kunoichi with her hair in Chinese buns wearing a pink battle shirt and dark blue jeans.

"Neji, why are you getting information on someone from our village?" the girl asked.

"Same reason this guy is getting info on Lee," Neji said, pointing to Sasuke.

"Alright, I'll do your request, just let me get done with his first," Kabuto said, pulling out three cards and pouring chakra into them. "Alright it looks like Gaara's first. He's from the Hidden Sand, is a year younger than you guys, and is on a team with his older siblings Kankuro and Temari with his sensei being a Jonin named Baki. He's combleted eight C-Rank missions and...whoa, a B-Rank! I don't have much else, but I do know that he's completed all his missions without even a scratch. Weird..."

Naruto frowned. He had an idea why, but didn't say anything.

"Next is Rock Lee," Kabuto said, putting Gaara's card back. He's a year older than you guys, and is from Konoha. His teammates are Neji Hyuga and Tenten, and his sensei is Maito Gai. He has no Ninjutsu or Genjutsu due to a strange mutation that prevents him from molding chakra for them, but can still use chakra to climb trees and walk on water. His Taijutsu skills are through the roof, however, so don't understimate him. He's completed 20 D-Ranks and 11 C-Ranks."

Sasuke glared at Lee, who smiled at the information.

"Okay, now it's Neji's request," Kabuto said, putting Lee's card back. "Let's see. Naruto Uzumaki is one of the rookies from Konoha. His teammates are Sakura Haruno and Sasuke Uchiha and his sensei is Kakashi Hatake. His Taijutsu, Genjutsu, and Ninjutsu are pretty good for a Genin, despite him being dead last in the academy. He's completed 14 D-Ranks, a joint B-Rank with another team, and an A-Rank! Known jutsus are Shadow Clones, Ras-" Kabuto didn't finish as Naruto swiped the card and deck away.

"I don't like your cards. They're too nosy," Naruto said, burning them with a minor Fire jutsu that Takeshi taught him.

Before Kabuto could say anything, a Jonin and several Chunin appeared in poofs of smoke at the front of the room. The Jonin wore a black cost that went to his knees, a grey shirt with many pockets, black gloves, and grey pants. He had scars across his face and wore his Konoha headband like a bandana. The Chunin were wearing the same thing minus the jacket and gloves. The Jonin spoke up. "Alright, you maggots! My name is Ibiki Morino, and I'll be your first proctor for the exams. Now, turn in your applications, take a seating assignment card, and report to the seat indicated on the card. We'll then pass out the written part of the test. Now move!"

Within minutes, everyone was seated. Naruto and Hinata sat next to each other in the third row near the middle, with the rest of their teams scattered around the room. Once everyone was quiet, Ibiki said, "Alright, I'm only going to say this once, so pay attention! There are a few rules about the exam that you must know, and don't ask any questions. First rule, everyone starts with ten points. The test has ten questions, each worth one point. You lose a point for each question you miss. Second rule, this is also a team test. Passing or failing is determined by the sum of the points held by all three members of each cell. The object is for each team to have the fewest points deducted as possible." As he said the rules he wrote them on the blackboard.

Sakura spoke up at that point. "I don't understand. Why is this a team test?"

"I said no questions," Ibiki answered. "Shut up and listen. These next two are the most important rules. Third rule, if a candidate does anything out of the ordinary and the proctors determine that the candidate is cheating, two points will be deducted from each member of the cheater's team. The last rule, if any individual loses all of his or her points, that person's squad is disqualified, regardless of how well the others do."

Several Genin shouted "What!"

"You heard me!" Ibiki replied. "Also, the final question will be given after forty-five minutes. You may begin."

Naruto turned over his paper and frowned. _'What the heck? You have to be a genius to answer these. Why would they... Oh!'_

_'Exactly, Naruto,'_ Takeshi responded. _'This isn't an intelligence test. It's a test to see how good your information-gathering skills are and how stealthy you are.'_

_'Well, I don't know any jutsu to help besides Shadow Clones,'_ Naruto considered.

_'I can help. Give me control for a minute,'_ Takeshi offered.

Naruto slumped slightly before Takeshi, who was now in control of his host's body, straightened him. He looked over the exam sheet and started answering the questions as Hinata started with her answers. Eventually, the Genin realized what the goal of the exam was, and started to try to cheat without getting caught. As time passed, about a fourth of the teams were disqualified for cheating. Takeshi finished answering Naruto's sheet and gave control back to him after ten minutes.

Forty-five minutes into the exam, Ibiki said, "Pencils down. I'm about to give you the tenth question. But first, let me tell you a special rule."

'More rules?' most of the Genin thought.

Kankuro, who had gone to the bathroom during the test with his puppet disguised as a procter escorting him, returned at that point. "Heh, it seems the time you've spent playing with dolls hasn't been wasted," Ibiki said to him, putting Kankuro on guard. "Sit down."

Kankuro walked to his seat, discreetly giving Temari his answers as he passed her.

"This last rule is absolute," Ibiki said after Kankuro sat down. "First you must choose whether or not to take the tenth question."

"Choose?" Temari asked. "What happens if we don't accept the question?"

"You will lose all your points and your team fails," Ibiki explained as Naruto narrowed his eyes.

"Then why would we choose not to answer it?" a random Genin shouted.

"Because of the next part of the rule," Ibiki said. Some Genin thought, 'What more can he add?' Ibiki then said, "If you do choose to take it and get it wrong... You will be barred from entering the Chunin Exams ever again!"

"That's bullcrap!" Kiba shouted. "There are dozens of people here who've done this exam more than once!"

Ibiki chuckled sadisticly. "I guess you're just unlucky. I wasn't making the rules before, but I am now. You can still back out now and take it in another six months. And then six months after that one. Heheheheh..." The Genin shivered. "Ready? Let's begin. Those who choose not to take the question should raise their hands. Once their number has been confirmed, they will leave with their team."

After a few seconds, a Genin next to Naruto raised his hand. "I-I'm out." That opened the floodgates. More people dropped out and soon, only half of the original number of teams remained.

"Anyone else?" Ibiki asked.

Naruto glanced to his right and saw that Hinata was starting to raise her hand. _'No way I'm letting her give up!'_ he thought before he raised his hand and slammed it on the desk.

"Is there a problem, number 23?" Ibiki asked.

"Yeah, I think you're full of crap!" Naruto said. "We're always going to face uncertainty on a mission, but does that mean we can choose not to take it? Hell no! Being a ninja means having to take risks!"

"Are you sure about this? If you answer incorrectly you will remain a Genin forever."

"So what? My team will still get high-rank missions and I'll still become Hokage if we work on our skills, dammit! Rank means nothing when it comes to skill!"

"This is something that will affect the rest of your life. Are you sure you want that?"

"Do your worst!"

Ibiki looked around and noticed that the Genin who were about to quit lower their hands with a determined look on their faces. 'Damn kid, ruining my fun.' "Alright, since no one else is quitting, I have one thing to say... You all pass."

After a few seconds of silence, a collective "WHAT?" rang through the room.

Ibiki opened his mouth to explain, but before he could, something crashed through the window and opened to reveal a buxom woman standing in front of a banner that said 'Your second proctor, the sexy mistress, Anko Mitarashi.' The woman, who had to be Anko, had purple hair tied in a pony tail that spiked in every direction, brown eyes with no pupils, and wore an open light brown trench coat over a mesh shirt, a light brown skirt that went halfway to her knees, and mesh shorts. "None of you are in a position to celebrate!" she shouted. "I'm your second proctor, Anko Mitarashi. Follow me to the next part of the exam!"

Ibiki stepped out from behind the banner and said, "You're early, Anko...again."

Anko blushed a bit in embarrassment, then counted the number of Genin. "Seventy-eight Genin? Ibiki! You must be slipping if you let twenty-six teams pass!"

"Or we could have exceptional applicants this year. Especially the blonde sitting in the fifth seat of the third row," Ibiki said, whispering the last part.

Anko looked to see Naruto sitting in the seat Ibiki indicated. "Yeah, right. I'll cut down the number by half before the next test is over."

_'By half?'_ several Genin thought.

"Alright, follow me! I'll explain the details when we get there!" Anko shouted before leading the Genin to the next part of the exam.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: Stage two will be next chapter, as I have plans that I need to flesh out. Please review!**


	8. In the Forest And the Tower

**A/N: I'm back with the next chapter! Hope you like it!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the story and my OCs.**

0o0o0o0o0

Ibiki walked through the exam room, picking up the test papers. When he reached Naruto's, he saw writing on the back of it. He saw many symbols that many wouldn't recognize, but he knew what they were when he saw the one at the bottom. It looked like a hexagonal crystal with the two sides that ran parallel to the vertical sides of the paper longer than the others surrounded by lines that seemed to form a wing above the crystal, with one line partially disconnected. _'The Clavat Tribal Symbol,'_ Ibiki thought, recognizing it. _'So the brat knows the how to write in the language of the four tribes.'_ Not many knew it, but Ibiki was one of the few ninja that was fluent in the ancient language. So he looked at the note above the symbol.

_'Ibiki,'_ it read, _'possible traitor in the Chunin Exams. His name's Kabuto Yakushi. He seems to know much about me that is classified information. You know what I mean by that. Notify the Hokage instantly.'_

He turned to one of the Chunin helping him gather up the exams and said, "Finish up here. I've got something I need to do." Seeing the Chunin nod, he left the room to find the Hokage.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto and Hinata walked next to each other, following the purple-haired woman as she led them and the rest of the examinees to the next stage of the exam. The woman stopped in front of an enormous forest that had eighty-foot tall trees and a large fence around it, and turned around. "Welcome to Training Ground 44, or as it's affectionately called, the Forest of Death," Anko announced.

Several Genin shivered at the name, though Naruto raised an eyebrow at it. _'Really? Hmm, makes sense,'_ he thought as he sensed the animals in the forest. His eyes widened however, when he sensed something that seemed out of place there and narrowed in on it. Something large was in there. Something that shouldn't be there. _'What is that?'_

In Naruto's mind, Layle and Amidatelion glanced at each other. _'You do not suppose...?'_ Amidatelion started.

_'I hope not,'_ Layle answered, shuddering slightly. _'Those things are tough to kill.'_

_'What is it?'_ Naruto mentally asked.

"Oi, brat, you scared?" Anko shouted at Naruto as she threw a kunai at him. Naruto ducked under it as it passed, barely missing his hair, but then found a kunai at his throat. He looked at the kunai, then behind him at Anko, who held the kunai, with a raised eyebrow.

"That's not going to scare me," he said, gesturing to the forest. "Nor are your tactics."

"Heh, whatever, brat. Tough guys like you are usually the first to go," Anko said before she removed the kunai from Naruto's throat and walked back to where she stood before. "Anyway, there are a few things you need to know about this part of the exam. First is that we need to have you sign a release form before you take it. You don't sign, you don't participate."

"Why is that?" a random Genin asked.

"Because we need your consent, so Konoha isn't held accountable if you die during the test. And trust me there will be deaths," Anko explained as a Chunin appeared and handed her a stack of forms. "You will sign these forms and turn them in at that tent over there." She gestured to a tent near the fence before handing the stack to Naruto, who took three for his team and passed the rest to Hinata. "Now, next are the rules and guidelines. It's a no-holds-barred survival test." She pulled out a scroll and opened it to reveal a basic map of the area. "Training Ground 44 is bordered by a circular perimeter with 44 gates equally distanced from each other. There are forests and a river, and in the center of the training ground is a tower, which is about ten kilometers from each gate. Within the confines of this area, you will undergo a survival test, during which you can use anything at your disposal." She rolled up the scroll. "It's a kind of fight-to-the-death version of capture the flag, or in this case, the scroll."

"Scroll?" a Genin asked as Anko put her scroll away and pulled out two more, one with a black border and the other with a white border.

"Exactly!" Anko said. "There is an earth scroll and a heaven scroll. Your objective is to obtain both and head to the tower in the given time limit of five days."

"Five days?" Choji asked. "But what do we do for food?"

"That's your problem," Anko said. "The forest has plenty of food. Of course, it also has giant tigers, blood-sucking leeches, and the occasional Goblin or Bomb monster." At that moment, a deafening roar was heard from the forest and the Genin and Anko covered their ears to protect their hearing.

"What the hell was that?" Shikamaru asked after everyone's hearing was back. "That was too loud and different to be a tiger."

"I don't know, but I would advise all of you to be careful," Anko said, frowning as she glanced behind her at the forest. "Now, if you find out what it is, report to the tower, even if you don't have both scrolls, so that it can be dealt with. Here are the rules. Any three-man team that does not have both scrolls when they report to the tower is disqualified. So is any team that has one or more members incapacitated or dead. Under no circumstances is a team allowed to leave once the test has begun. And finally, no team is to look at their scrolls' contents until you're inside the tower."

"Why is that?" Sakura asked.

"Let me put it this way: You. Don't. Want. To. Know," Anko replied. "Now then, you have half an hour to fill out your forms."

0o0o0o0o0

The Hokage exhaled a large sigh and slumped in his chair a bit as he finished the last of his paperwork...for now. He thought of the current Chunin Exams, and couldn't help but get the feeling that something would go wrong. Shaking his head, he straightened as a knock came from the door to his office. "Enter," he called, and watched as a tall man in his early twenties entered. He had light brown hair hidden by an archaeology hat and blue eyes behind oval-shaped glasses. He wore a light brown jacket with many pockets, dark brown pants, and boots. He recognized him as Taiki Nakashima from Kakashi and Kurenai's report from the mission to the ruins. The man had contacted him, and asked to meet with the Hokage a few days earlier, and the wizened Hokage had agreed to it.

"Hello there, Professor Nakashima," Hiruzen said, motioning for the professor to sit down. "What is it you wanted to discuss?"

"Lord Hokage, I have come here on behalf of the Elder Council from my home country to discuss an urgent matter with you," Taiki replied, making Hiruzen become more alert.

Guarding his reactions, Hiruzen replied, "I see. If I may ask, what is your home country, and what is it you wish to discuss?"

Taiki hesitated for a second. The Council had told him not to reveal himself unless necessary, and not to budge on their position on the matter. Thinking quickly, he said, "My country is well-known, but also believed to have faded. As for what I wish to discuss, it entails to one of your shinobi."

Hiruzen narrowed his eyes at the man in front of him. "I will need the exact name of your country, and the name of the shinobi in question. Do not try to sugarcoat your words."

Taiki hesitated again, then said, "If you activate the privacy seals in this room, I will tell you." Seeing the Hokage agree and activate the seals, he took off his hat, revealing the plant-like bud his hair took, and said, "My real name is Del Dee Nakashima of the Lilty Kingdom, and the matter I have been sent to discuss concerns the rightful heir to the kingdom's throne, Naruto Uzumaki Sol Alfitaria."

0o0o0o0o0

After they were given the thirty minute break, everyone had wandered off a short way to sign their forms. Teams Eight and Seven had found a tree to sit under as they filled out their forms. After filling out her form, Hinata had moved and sat in Naruto's lap with the back of her head resting on his chest, much to Naruto's embarrassment and the others' amusement. Suddenly, Naruto turned away from his team and Team Eight and sneezed, shivering slightly. _'That came out of nowhere. Someone must be talking about me.'_

"Are you okay, Naruto?" Sakura asked as she signed her form, having fully read it after everyone signed theirs.

"I'm fine," Naruto replied. "I don't know what made that roar, but I do know it's something that shouldn't be in there. Whatever it is, we should avoid it. Agreed?" Everyone nodded in approval, and Naruto continued, "Also, we should meet up and work together in there. That way, we'll finish faster."

"You sure you don't just want to spend more time with Hinata?" Kiba asked, smirking as Naruto and said girl blushed slightly, but didn't deny it. "But you're right, I guess. It would be easier."

At that moment, Anko's voice boomed throughout the area. "All teams are to report to the tent now. We will be starting soon."

Hinata sighed as she took her head off her boyfriend's chest. Everyone stood up and was about to head out when Naruto said, "Wait, we should have a password when we meet up, just so we know that someone's not trying to trick us."

Sasuke nodded. "How about we ask who Naruto's ancestors were, since we all know the answer?"

Everyone agreed, though Naruto did hesitantly, and moved to the tent. Team Eight entered first, and exited soon. They nodded at Naruto's team, then left to whatever gate they were assigned. Naruto's team then entered and turned in their forms to a Chunin inside, who took them and gave them a Heaven scroll, which Naruto pocketed. "Your gate is number eight."

They exited the tent and headed to their gate, passing a team from the Hidden Grass Village, based on the symbol that looked like grass on their headbands. After they reached the gate, they heard another loud roar, this time slightly closer, and pressed their hands to their ears.

"Sounds like it's getting closer," Sasuke said after he uncovered his ears.

"Yeah," Sakura said shakily. gulping. Sasuke noticed this and placed a hand on her shoulder, calming her slightly.

"Don't worry. If it's something nasty, I can just spam Shadow Clones to keep it busy while we run," Naruto said.

Sakura sighed in relief, then realized something. "Hey Naruto? Why did you ask Kiba to get Kabuto's scent?"

Naruto tensed slightly. "It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell you at the tower."

"Alright," Sakura said, seeing that Naruto didn't want to talk about it.

At that moment, Anko appeared on the fence above them. "Okay, one last piece of advice before we start..." She paused dramatically, the shouted, "Just don't die!" The gates shot open as soon as she finished, and every team shot into the forest, ready to begin the second exam.

After travelling a few hundred meters, Naruto sensed someone following them and said, "Hang on guys, I gotta take a leak." Not waiting for a response, he went behind a tree and made to unzip his pants. Before he did, he said, "You know it's wrong to sneak up on a guy taking a leak, right?" His hand shot out to a bush and he pulled back, flinging out a guy wearing a beige jumpsuit, a gas mask, goggles, and a shinobi headband from the Hidden Mist Village and catching him by the neck. "Did you really think one of us wouldn't notice you coming?"

"You brat!" the nin said as well as he could with Naruto's hand on his throat.

"Now then," Naruto said as he took out a kunai and held it up to the nin's throat, "what scroll does your team have?"

"An Earth Scroll, but you'll never get it! I don't have it!"

"Oh?" Naruto asked before knocking him out. He let go of the nin's throat and searched through his belongings, finding kunai, shuriken, several poisons, and the Earth Scroll the nin mentioned. _'Really, he didn't think I could tell he was lying? A person's magical pressence fluctuates slightly when they're lying,'_ he thought as he pocketed the scroll.

He then left the nin there and walked out from behind the tree. Sasuke, noticing Naruto return, said, "Hold it! First, who were your ancestors, Naruto?"

"Layle and Althea Sol Alfitaria," Naruto said, also demonstrating his Kekkei Genkai.

Sasuke relaxed and said, "Sorry, Naruto, I couldn't risk it being an impostor. Second, what took so long?"

"A Mist nin tried to jump me, but I turned it on him and got this," Naruto explained as he pulled out the Earth Scroll.

"Nice!" Sakura exclaimed, smiling. "Now let's find the others and get to the tower."

They moved to enter the trees, but before they did, they heard a shout of "Naruto-kun!" Turning around, they saw Hinata, Kiba, Akamaru, and Shino enter the clearing, looking a bit winded but pleased.

"Wait! Before you take another step, you have to tell me who Naruto's ancestors were," Sasuke said, his right hand reaching for a kunai.

"Layle and Althea," Hinata said, making Sasuke relax after glancing at Naruto, who nodded.

"Okay, you're the real deal," Sasuke said. "How are you three doing?"

"Got both scrolls. We lead a team under some giant leeches, and we took the scroll before they ate it," Kiba said. "You?"

"We have both as well," Sakura said as Hinata glomped Naruto.

"Glad to see you too, Hina," Naruto said, returning the hug. He then looked up at Kiba and Shino, then paled extremely quickly as he saw what was glaring at all of them from the forest.

"Naruto? You okay?" Kiba asked, confused.

"Guys, don't make any sudden moves. Get into the forest behind me, if you want to live," Naruto ordered quietly, keeping hold of Hinata as he started backing up.

"Huh?" Kiba asked, looking behind him. He paled as well and did as Naruto ordered. "What is that thing?"

The "thing", as Kiba called it, was over twenty feet tall. It had deep purple fur and sharp black claws as long as their arms, its tail whipping behind it. Its beige horns jutted up from the sides of it's head then curved behind in a circle before shooting out in front of it, flattening out. Its beady red eyes locked onto its prey as they started backing slowly into the forest, and its vertical mouth, full of incredibly sharp canines, opened before it let out an ear-splitting roar. Crouching, it prepared to lunge.

"Screw it. RUN!" Naruto yelled, making Shadow Clones to keep it busy before picking up Hinata and running into the forest with the others right behind him.

The creature lunged, but a Shadow Clone gave it a gravity-infused punch in the stomach, getting its attention. It swiped, dispelling the clone before it could dodge. The other clones charged, but were dispelled almost immediately due to a large fireball from the creature's mouth. Growling, it picked up its preys' scents, and ran after them.

Naruto's head jerked slightly as he received the memories from his clones, and said, "Dammit, pick up the pace, guys! It's coming after us!"

"What the hell is that thing?" Kiba shouted as Akamaru whimpered in Kiba's jacket.

"A sub-species of Behemoth monsters known as a Behemoth Lord!" Naruto shouted back. "These things don't give up easily when they try to catch their prey! They've been known to run for kilometers just to get it! And they're harder to kill than twenty King Behemoths! We got to get to the tower!"

"How the hell can the village let one in here?" Sasuke yelled.

"They didn't! Someone else let it loose!" Naruto shouted as he landed on a root then shot off it.

"Who?"

"I don't know!" Naruto replied before a roar was heard.

"Crap!" Kiba shouted, increasing his speed as the others did the same.

As they ran to the tower, a man wearing a headband from the Hidden Grass Village came out of the ground in front of them and started signing for a jutsu, but the two Leaf teams ignored him as they ran past with Naruto shouting, "Move it!"

Confused, the man turned his head to watch his prey disappear into the trees, wondering briefly why they were so scared even though he had not done anything. Hearing a loud roar, he turned his head back in front of him and, seeing the Behemoth Lord, said to himself, "Ah. That must be why." He then bit his thumb and made a few hand signs as he declared, "Summoning Jutsu!" In a large poof of smoke, a snake just as big as the Behemoth Lord appeared and wrapped itself around the monster. "Deal with that nuisance, then dismiss yourself," he ordered before sinking into the earth.

0o0o0o0o0

"Hinata, how far to the tower?" Naruto asked as he jumped from branch to branch.

Hinata activated her Byakugan and said, "Maybe several kilometers." As she took in their surroundings to make sure they weren't being followed, she gasped in horror. "N-Naruto-kun! Someone's chasing us! H-his chakra network is far above Jonin levels, but i-it looks...fragmented and bent at unnatural angles." She started to shake in fear, which made Naruto tighten his grip on her.

"Alright, deactivate your Byakugan," Naruto whispered, then called to the others, "Guys, someone's chasing us! I don't know who, but he or she is far above Jonin levels!"

"How did someone like that sneak into the exams?" Kiba asked, sniffing for anything unusual.

"I don't know!" Naruto shouted, before he and Hinata were blasted with a Wind jutsu in midair, sending them flying away.

"Naruto! Hinata!" Sakura shouted as the man they passed earlier came out of the ground in front of them.

"Hehehe, I'm afraid your friends won't be able to help you, even if they survive. Your fight is with me," he said, before launching himself at them.

Sasuke grunted as he blocked a kunai swing from the unknown man, hoping that Naruto and Hinata would be okay. For now though, he had to worry about surviving.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto grunted as he landed on his back, keeping Hinata from getting hurt. He heard a sharp crack, and pain flooded his body, starting at his back. "Aaaah!" Naruto hissed in pain, making Hinata snap up in worry.

"H-hey! Are you two alright?" they heard a voice call, and looked to see Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji running at them with worried looks on their faces.

"I-I'm fine, but Naruto-kun is hurt! I heard a crack as we landed!"

"I think it's my spine," Naruto groaned. "Hina, could you...?"

"Oh, sorry!" Hinata apologized, getting off Naruto. Naruto tried to get up, but Hinata forced him back down, saying, "Don't move until I can take a look a the damage, Naruto-kun." She activated her Byakugan and started surveying the damage to her fiance's spine. "I-it's fractured at the tenth and fourth discs."

"Anything we can do to help?" Choji asked, his face and voice layered with concern, as were Shikamaru and Ino's.

"I can heal it on my own," Naruto said.

"Naruto-kun, that's not a good idea," Hinata said, taking off one of her packs and searching through it. "Oh, where is it?" she asked absentmindedly before saying, "Ah! Here it is!" She pulled out a green sphere with two crystals in it, making Shikamaru gasp in shock.

"Where did you get that?" Shikamaru asked, his eyes wide.

"Long story," Hinata answered, before channeling energy into it and saying, "Cura." A soft green glow enveloped Naruto for a few seconds as a bulb appeared and disappeared over him, with vines circling all of them before disappearing. Naruto groaned and sat up, shocking Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji.

"Ngh, thanks, Hina," Naruto said before standing and stretching his back a bit.

"What the- How are you able to do that?" Ino demanded.

"Ino, that was a magicite Hinata used," Shikamaru explained. "If I remember correctly, Cura heals injuries."

"You're right, it does," Naruto said. "Hina, we go to get back to the others."

"But that man..."

"Hina, it could be _him_," Naruto said, and Hinata's eyes widened before hardening.

"Let's go," Hinata said.

"Where are you guys going?" Ino asked.

"Back to our teams. We were attacked by someone," Naruto explained before jumping off with Hinata close behind.

Shikamaru sighed. "Well, I guess we should go help. It's troublesome, but there is strength in numbers."

Choji nodded. "Yeah, I don't want my friends getting hurt. Ino?" He turned to Ino...only to find she wasn't there.

"Come on, guys, hurry up! They need our help!" Ino called over her shoulder as she followed Naruto and Hinata.

The two boys looked at each other before running off after Ino.

0o0o0o0o0

Sasuke flew back after he received a fierce kick from his opponent and collided with a tree, making him cough up a bit of blood from the impact and slide down onto the branch. Seconds later, Kiba, Akamaru, and Shino impacted the tree to his left and right as Sakura barely dodged a punch from the strange man that was clearly toying with them.

"Damn, this guy is strong," Kiba groaned, holding his stomach. "Any ideas?"

"One, but Naruto isn't here," Sasuke said as Sakura was sent flying into him. "Aaagh!"

"Sorry," Sakura apologized as Sasuke rubbed his stomach.

"Is this it? What a shame. I was expecting better from the mighty Uchiha. You really are weaker than your brother, Sasuke-kun," the man said.

Sasuke's head jerked up in surprise before he glared at the man. "Who are you and how do you know my brother?"

"Oh, we've met once. He did say something about you not even worth killing," the man said. "But we're wasting time." He made a few hand signs and to the Genin's surprise his neck stretched as it went after Sasuke. None of them were in any state to even attempt to stop him, so Sasuke braced himself for whatever was coming...and watched as a black shinobi sandal made contact with the strange man's face. Sasuke instantly recognized the jacket the person who saved him was wearing.

"About time you got here...fool," Sasuke smirked at his friend and teammate.

Naruto landed in front of Sasuke as the strange man's neck returned to normal length and four more allies landed near Naruto in the forms of Hinata, Ino, Choji, and Shikamaru.

"This the guy who attacked you?" Choji asked.

"Yeah," Naruto said, standing in front of Sasuke.

The man frowned. "Bell, bhat do be dave dere?" The man stopped speaking for a second as he realized how he sounded, reached up to his nose, and with a sickening crack, set it back to normal. "Ah, that's better. It seems more rats have come to play."

Naruto narrowed his eyes as he noticed something odd about the man in front of him. "You... That's not your real face, is it?"

The man blinked in surprise, then laughed. "So you could tell? Intriguing. I will definitely take your dead body back to my village. I've never experimented on a Crystal Bearer before." He tore off his face, only to reveal another beneath it. One with pale skin, purple marks around his eyes, and reptilian eyes.

Takeshi, looking through Naruto's eyes, growled and shouted in Naruto's mind, _'THAT'S HIM! THAT'S THE BASTARD THAT KILLED MIREI!'_

Naruto growled. "So it is you," he said, confusing everyone except Hinata. "I didn't expect to meet you so soon, bastard."

"What are you talking about?" the man asked.

"YOU KNOW FULL WELL! NEARLY THIRTEEN YEARS AGO, ON OCTOBER TENTH, THE DAY THE NINE-TAILED FOX ATTACKED! I KNOW THAT WAS YOUR DOING!" Naruto yelled, pissed off and forgetting his friends were lstening. "I KNOW WHO YOU ARE, AND YOU'RE NOT GETTING AWAY THIS TIME, OROCHIMARU!"

Orochimaru blinked, then started chuckling. Soon that chuckling turned into laughter, loud, insane laughter. "So you know, fox brat? I suppose it doesn't matter either way. You won't keep me from my prey." He launched himself forward, but was blasted back with Naruto's gravity powers.

At that moment, a loud roar was heard as the Behemoth Lord from earlier came barrelling out of the forest and collided with Orochimaru.

"Maybe not, but that can," Naruto said to his friends. He turned to his injured comrades and asked, "Can you walk?"

"Ngh, no," Sasuke grunted, barely managing to stand. "I can barely stand."

The other three just nodded in agreement to Sasuke's words. Naruto glanced at the Behemoth Lord, which was oddly keeping Orochimaru from interfering. "It looks like we have a chance to leave. Hina, how far is it to the tower?"

Hinata activated her Byakugan and said, "About three kilometers."

Naruto nodded and created four clones to carry Sasuke, Sakura, Kiba, and Shino while Hinata picked up Akamaru, who licked her face in thanks. Naruto looked at Shikamaru and asked, "You guys have both scrolls, right?"

"We just got the other earlier due to an overconfidant Grass ninja. Why?" Shikamaru replied.

"Can you guard us as we head to the tower? We're not in that good condition," Naruto explained, though it was partially true. He and Hinata could fight for a bit, but he didn't want to push himself to much since he just had his back broken and healed and he didn't want Hinata fighting alone.

Shikamaru sighed. "Fine, but you owe us an explanation afterwards about what you were shouting."

Naruto sighed as he said, "Fine. But you may not like me after." He then jumped off with his clones and Hinata following. The other three blinked in surprise to the blond's words, then followed, falling into formation around them quickly.

The journey to the tower was relatively quick considering that they had five injured people and were tired. Not hesitating, they entered the tower through one of the double doors with Choji and Shikamaru slamming them immediately after everyone was in.

Instead of looking around, Naruto's clones set down their cargo and poofed out of existance as everyone else collapsed and decided to take a break.

0o0o0o0o0

Orochimaru was pissed as he finally killed the damned Behemoth Lord that had stopped him from placing his mark on his prey. _'No matter. It is only a matter of time before I give Sasuke-kun my mark,'_ he thought as he grinned evilly. _'And I will have to kill Naruto-kun before he interferes again.'_

He slid into the ground and moved to a secret location in the village, one obscured from the vision his old fool of a sensei, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage. Sliding into the room, he was met by a large, dark-skinned Lilty with his green hair in three braids running down to his ankles. He wore a dark blue-green opened jacket with gold trimming at the bottom that also went down to his ankles, dark green pants, black combat boots, a black military shirt, and a gauntlet with a face at the closed end that went up to the elbow on his right arm. Noticing Orochimaru, the man asked in a rough voice, "Were you successful in your goal?"

"Unfortunately not. It seems a descendant of the one who killed you all those years ago was the one to stop me...Jegran," Orochimaru replied, watching as Jegran clenched his fist in anger. "Unfortunately, he is also the one who holds the Nine-Tailed Fox, and he seems to know of our involvement in its attack."

"Che," Jegran scoffed. "What can he do? He is nowhere near strong enough to fight either of us. And either way, he'll die soon." He shook his head. "More importantly, are you sure your plant in the village can be trusted?"

Orochimaru chuckled evilly before replying, "He has no choice but to be my spy. Not if he wants her to live." He jerked his head to the other person in the room, an unconscious female about fifteen years of age who had long silver hair and facial features similar to her brother.

In her sleep, she muttered his name. "Kabuto-kun..."

0o0o0o0o0

"I cannot do what your Elder Council has requested, Del Dee!" Hiruzen said, glaring at the man in front of him. He could hardly believe what the man had requested in place of his Council.

"Naruto is the heir to the throne, Lord Hokage!" Del Dee answered. "He is the only remaining member of the Alfitarian royal family, and as such, the Elders believe he should accept his birthright!"

"He is a registered ninja under my command, Del Dee! Your Council has no authority over him!"

Del Dee calmed down before the wizened Hokage decided to throw him out. He knew from the start that the Elders' plan was foolish, but they were too corrupt and power-hungry to see that it was useless. Truthfully, he didn't want Naruto to become a puppet ruler. He quickly thought about what he should say, then said, "Lord Hokage, you do not understand what the Elder Council will do to try to get Naruto. They are extremely stubborn, and will do next to anything to ensure that Naruto ascends to the throne."

"Is that a threat?" Hiruzen asked, narrowing his eyes.

"No, sir. I am not threatening you, but warning you. They've done horrible things to keep their power, a truth I learned the hard way." He rolled up his left sleeve and revealed an old linear scar that was completely black. "This was done when I voiced that we should stop searching for any heirs to the throne about twenty years ago, and about twenty others agreed with me. The other protestors were executed with the official story being that they tried to kill the Elders, but I was spared only because of my skills as an archaeologist and the fact that I was too well-known for the execution to be unsuspicious. Instead, they made me into their whipping boy. Please, Lord Hokage, if you do not accept their request, then you will have to ensure that the Elders cannot reach him, or anyone he cares about, for that matter. They are tenacious and stubborn, and will do anything to keep their power."

The wizened Hokage studied the man in front of him, looking for any hint of deception. He found none, which led him to believe his warniing was real. "I understand. Inform your Elders that they will not get Naruto."

"Of course," Del Dee said as he stood and replaced his hat. "If you receive a message saying _'The radiance is gone, and the golems are coming for the maelstrom,'_ it means I am most likely dead, and the Elders are coming for Naruto." With his final warning given, he bowed and left the office after the Hokage deactivated the secrecy seals.

_'That is ominous,'_ Hiruzen thought. _'I will definitely keep an eye out for such a message.'_

0o0o0o0o0

Everyone stretched a bit as they stood up after their rest and finally took a look around the room they entered. The room was bare except for a few tags, a riddle on the wall made by the Third Hokage, and two walkways leading further into the tower.

"What's the writing for?" Ino wondered out loud before reading, "_'If qualities of Heaven are your desire, acquire knowledge and wisdom to take your mind higher. If Earthly qualities are what you lack, train your body in the fields and prepare to attack. When both Heaven and Earth are opened together, the path of peril will revert to the righteous path forever. This 'something' is the secret way that guides us from this place today.'_ What does that mean?" She crossed her arms, thinking.

_'Hmm, what do you think, guys?'_ Naruto asked the people in his mind.

_'Well,'_ Layle said, thinking it over, _'each team was given either an Earth scroll or a Heaven scroll. Maybe it's telling you to open them.'_

_'That does sound like what the riddle is saying, at least partly,'_ Amidatelion agreed. _'The other part concerns your mind and body. Replace 'Earthly qualities' with 'physical strength' and 'Heavenly qualities' with 'mental strength,' and it makes more sense.'_

Naruto did, and confirmed Amidatelion was right. He pitched the ideas to the other ninja, and each team agreed. Standing in a row, each team opened their scrolls to find a complex array. Naruto and Sasuke, who had opened the scrolls for their team, tensed and tossed the scrolls away in an X-pattern with Naruto shouting, "Guys, throw away the scrolls! They're summoning scrolls!" The other teams obliged as the scrolls started to smoke and tossed them in similar patterns in front of them.

Poofs of smoke erupted from the scrolls, obscuring the Genin's view until the smoke cleared, revealing a man with brown hair tied in a ponytail, brown eyes, and a scar across the bridge of his nose wearing a Leaf headband, a Chunin vest, and a dark blue shirt and ninja pants. Two other Chunin stood to each side of the first, and the Genin recognized them as two of the proctors from the first exam. All three Chunin looked at each other in confusion, then at the teams.

The one in the middle spoke up first. "Why don't you two take a break? I'll handle it," he said to the other Chunin, who nodded and used a jutsu to disappear in swirls of leaves. He then addressed the Genin. "First off, congratulations on passing the second exam, you guys. You did real well to get here this early." It was then that he took notice of Naruto, and his eyes widened. "Wha- Naruto, is that really you?"

"Of course it's me, Iruka-sensei," Naruto said, a little saddened his teacher and friend from the academy didn't recognize him at first.

Iruka just stared for a few seconds, then shook his head. "Finally taking the ninja life seriously, eh kid?"

"I have been after the mission to Wave," Naruto replied.

"Well, I don't think anything else will surprise me now," Iruka said with a chuckle. "That's the last thing I expected from you."

Naruto smirked slightly and said, "Really? How's this?" He suddenly wrapped an arm around Hinata, who had been standing next to him, and kissed her full on the lips, making her blush profusely before returning it as she wrapped her arms around his neck.

Iruka stood there shocked. Back at the academy, Hinata had been a nervous wreck around Naruto, barely able to form a sentence without either stuttering or fainting whenever she talked to him or around him, and now she was kissing him without fainting. Blushing badly, but not fainting. "What- WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN?" Iruka yelled, making all the Genin jump in surprise at how loud he was and Naruto and Hinata break away from each other.

"Um, a month ago," Hinata answered with a blush. "Naruto-kun asked me out, and we've been dating since."

Iruka blinked before muttering something about keeping him updated on his former students, to which all of said students chuckled.

"Okay, back on track," Iruka said, "since you all got here on the first day, rest up until the exam is over. You know, you all have the second fastest time for completing the second exam. You were beaten by a team from Sand by about an hour, but it's still an accomplishment for Genin straight out of the academy." He smiled at them in pride.

0o0o0o0o0

"Okay, Naruto, what did you mean by Orochimaru being behind the Nine-Tailed Fox incident?" Shikamaru asked as everyone sat in Team Seven's room, all of them except Hinata staring at the whiskered blond.

Naruto sighed and stood up, walking over to the window. "Before I explain, I have to explain where and who I got that information from."

"Naruto-kun, are you really going to tell them?" Hinata asked, and shrank back slightly when nine pairs of eyes focused on her for a second.

"Hina, I don't really have a choice," Naruto said somewhat sadly. "What do you all know about the incident?"

"Only what the academy books have said, and what my clan told me," Shino said. "The Nine-Tailed Fox attacked the village, though no one knows why, and that the Fourth sacrificed his life and one other life to stop it, and the majority of the civilians and many ninja of the Hidden Leaf spit on that sacrifice every day.

Naruto and Hinata were shocked that Shino knew that much, but Naruto said, "Yes. That actually makes things a bit easier. But under NO circumstances are you allowed to tell anyone what I'm about to tell you without my express permission. Hinata already knows it, but this is an S-Class secret with a penalty of death."

Sakura's eyes widened as she said, "Then don't tell us if you'll be killed for telling us!"

"Sakura, it's alright. I'm exempt from the law that forbids people from telling others," Naruto explained.

"How the hell are you exempt from a law with a death penalty?" Kiba asked.

"It's because the law takes him into account in some way. Right, Naruto?" Shikamaru explained lazily before yawning.

"That's right. Our academy books say that the Nine-Tailed Fox was killed by the Fourth. That's a lie. Humans can't kill demons unless it's a female that has given birth in the last week or if it's less than a year old, and the nine Biju can't be killed except by each others' hands. What actually happened was the Fourth sealed him. But he couldn't use anything for the container. He had to use a newborn child, not even a day old. Now, what is my birthday?"

The others, except Hinata and Shikamaru, looked confused until Shino spoke up, and they gasped. "October the tenth. Am I correct...Naruto?"

Naruto turned around and lifted his shirt, giving Hinata a nosebleed, and poured chakra into his stomach. A complicated seal array appeared on his stomach, which was all the proof everyone needed. "I'm what's called a Jinchuriki, or 'Power of Human Sacrifice.' It's a term used to describe what humans with a demon sealed inside them are." He let go of the shirt and looked down, tears starting to form. "I can understand if you never want to talk to me again."

Everyone looked shocked at that, before Ino got up, walked over to him, and...slapped him in the face. Hard.

"Never say that again, Naruto!" Ino almost yelled at him. "You are you, and the fox is the fox. You are just two souls in one body."

"Ino's right," Sasuke said, nodding, as everyone nodded and Hinata got up and embraced him, kissing the spot where Ino slapped him.

Tears fell from Naruto's eyes as he looked at all of them and said, "Thank you."

"I figured it out years ago, and it doesn't matter. It's really just troublesome to hate someone just because he or she has a demon sealed inside him or her," Shikamaru said, rolling his eyes lazily. Everyone chuckled at that.

"Naruto, what did you mean when you said that Orochimaru was behind the attack?" Ino asked as she sat back down, but a knock on the door prevented Naruto from answering.

"Come in," Naruto called as he and Hinata sat next to each other.

The door opened to reveal the Third Hokage, who entered the room and closed the door behind him to the surprise of most of the Genin. "Hello, Naruto. I heard you encountered a snake I lost in the forest?"

The others looked confused for a second before Naruto said, "Yeah, it was definitely Orochimaru."

The Hokage sighed. "I also heard what else you encountered in there, and of course your conversation with your friends here." That made everyone tense a bit. Hiruzen chuckled. "Don't worry, none of you are in trouble, although I will be informing your parents of your knowledge of Takeshi."

Everyone except Hinata and Naruto looked confused. "Who's Takeshi?" Ino asked.

"That's the fox's name, Ino," Naruto explained, getting the Genin's attention.

"His name? You've talked to him?" Sakura asked.

"Yes, and yes I have. You shouldn't take rumors about the Biju for granted. He's actually a pretty good guy once you've gotten on his good side."

_'Don't tell them that,'_ Takeshi groaned, slapping his forehead, making Naruto's mouth twitch up in a smirk for a second.

"So why did he attack the village?" Sakura asked. Before Naruto could answer, Takeshi stopped him.

_'Let me tell them,'_ Takeshi said.

_'Alright,'_ Naruto responded mentally after a few seconds before saying, "I'll let Takeshi explain himself." He brought out a kunai and placed the blade on his wrist, drawing blood and shocking everyone present.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" Ino screamed as the blood flowed onto the floor.

"Giving Takeshi a body so he can speak to you," Naruto said as he removed the kunai once he had enough blood and to everyone except Hinata, Shikamaru, and the Hokage's amazement the wound started healing before their eyes and closed in seconds without even a scratch remaining. Naruto made a few hand signs and said, "Blood Clone Jutsu." Instantly, the blood started to congeal and form up, building itself up and changing colors in places until an exact replica of Naruto sat next to the real one.

"Naruto, where did you learn a jutsu like that?" the Hokage asked in shock.

"Takeshi taught me it, though this is the first time I've used it around others," Naruto said, flying through some more hand signs before slamming a hand onto the seal and said, "Forbidden Jutsu: Soul Release Jutsu!" He pulled out a glowing, deep red sphere and shot it into his clone, which glowed the same shade of red as the sphere before blinding everyone. Everyone covered their eyes to avoid damaging them and when the light faded, lowered them only to have the eyes of those who hadn't seen him widen at Takeshi's human form.

Takeshi looked at them and joked, "What? Expecting a giant, multi-tailed fox?" The Genin nodded. Takeshi chuckled. "Well, I don't think the civilian council would appreciate me destroying the tower and scaring the hell out of everyone, so I chose my human form."

Shikamaru recovered first and asked, "Okay, so why did you attack the village?"

Takeshi sighed sadly. "I was tricked by Orochimaru and a Crystal Bearer. That night, my mate, Mirei, was still slightly tired after giving birth to our kit Genshi a few days earlier, so I went out hunting for her while she fed him. When I got back, I found blood at the entrance to our cave, and rushed in only to see that bastard Orochimaru stab her in the heart as the Bearer stood over my kit's crystallized body. I yelled in rage and lunged at them, but they quickly used an Earth jutsu to escape, leaving behind a Leaf headband. I was about to go after them when Mirei coughed up blood, and instead rushed to her side, activating a healing jutsu, but it was too late. She had already lost a lot of blood from protecting Genshi, and had three different venoms in her remaining blood." At this point, even those who had heard the story before were either flat-out crying or had tears in their eyes, while Takeshi's tears were dropping onto the floor as his voice started to break. "I was barely able to buy her enough time for her to say goodbye. I was so overcome by grief and rage, I...I just picked up the headband and ran to the village, transforming into my beast form as soon as I was out of the cave, not even considering that the village had nothing to do with it. It was only after I was sealed and I had calmed down that I had realized that the village was innocent after searching my memory."

Hinata was crying into Naruto's shoulder while Sakura cried into Sasuke's and Ino into Choji's as the mentioned guys comforted them. Naruto glanced at Takeshi, tears rolling down his face. He had never heard the full version, only the short one, as it had seemed to hurt Takeshi horribly to remember that night.

Takeshi barely managed to regain his composure as he said, "I won't blame you if you still hate me for what I did."

After a few seconds, Sakura managed to stop crying enough to say, "I...*hic*...I don't hate you. I-it's all Orochimaru and that B-Bearer's fault. Th-they're the ones to b-blame, n-not you. You j-just fell into a trap. You're as m-much a victim a-as the village."

"I agree," Choji said, wiping his tears away. "You reacted the same way any of us would in your situation. I know I would have."

The other Genin agreed. After they finished, Takeshi said quietly, "Thank you." He then vanished in a swirl of leaves, giving Naruto a mental message about where he was going so the others wouldn't worry.

"He's on the roof in a transformation right now, and wants some time to himself," Naruto told his leader when the man looked at him questioningly, and the man nodded.

"Very well then." The Hokage stood up and walked to the door before looking back at the Genin. "I suggest you all rest up for the next few days. I will see you all after the second exam is over." With that, he left, leaving the Genin to talk to each other.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: Well, there you have it. The rookies learn about Takeshi and Orochimaru's involvement in the attack, another villain is revealed, a secret is revealed, and you learn more about the attack. I had tears in my eyes when writing that last one. If you weren't even saddened by this, you have a problem.**

**Review, or I'll tell Takeshi you were involved in the attack in some way.**


	9. Preliminaries

**A/N: Sorry for the wait, everyone! Life threw me a curvebal and I had to wait to work on this. You know what to do! Read and review!**

0o0o0o0o0

Four days after Naruto told his friends about Takeshi, the second stage in the Chunin Exams was over, with the only teams passing being Naruto's team, Hinata's team, Team Ten, Gaara's team, Neji's team, Kabuto's team, and the team from Sound.

Currently, all the teams were standing in in lines of three in a large rectangular room with walkways on opposite walls, a large statue of the ram hand sign in between them at one end, and a doorway on the opposite side of the room of the statue. Standing in front of the Genin were the Hokage and the Jonin senseis of each team as well as some other Konoha Jonin, Iruka, Ibiki, and Anko, with other Chunin watching from another room via a live video feed. The Hokage looked at the assembled Genin and thought, _'Seven teams passed. From Konoha, Teams Seven through Ten passed along with Kabuto's team. We also have one team each from Sand and Sound. Not a bad turn out.'_

The Hokage cleared his throat and said, "Congratulations to you all on passing the second exam. Now, before we begin the third exam, let me make one thing clear. It pertains to the underlying purpose of the exam. You were told the series of exams were being conducted to promote friendship between nations and raise the level of the shinobi standard. But that is not true. This series of exams is, in fact, a technical war between nations. Yes, it is to select Chunin, but there is a more important purpose. It displays a village's strength to potential clients, and thereby making said clients decide who to hire for missions. That is why you will fight in front of the noblemen and rulers of the countries... even to the death, if need be! The 'friendship' between the shinobi nations is maintained through the balance of power. Remember, this is no ordinary test! You risk not only your own futures and dreams, but your village's dignity and prestige as well. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir!" the Genin said.

"Now," the Hokage started, but stopped as a man in a Chunin vest and a standard dark-blue long-sleeve shirt and pants holding a clipboard appeared kneeling in front of him.

"Actually, Lord Hokage, if you would allow me, Gekko Hayate, to explain, as the proctor of the third round," the man said.

The Hokage nodded. "Granted."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama." He turned to face the Genin, revealing his sickly pale complexion and the bags under his brown eyes and said, "Before we start (cough) the third exams, I'm afraid (cough) we will have to hold (cough, cough, cough) a preliminary round."

_'Did they drag him out of the hospital for this?'_ Naruto thought as he raised his eyebrows.

_'Looks can be deceiving, Naruto,'_ Layle reminded his descendant.

"What do you mean by preliminary round?" Shikamaru asked.

"Well, truthfully, (cough) we still have too many applicants to advance (cough) to the third exam. Traditionally, we must undergo a (cough) preliminary round to reduce the number of applicants. As Hokage-sama said, many honored guests will be watching (cough, cough) the third exam, so we cannot waste their (cough) time by having too many applicants. So, if anyone (cough) does not feel up to the task, speak up (hack) now and you will be allowed to leave."

After a few seconds, Kabuto raised his hand. "I'm out. I had a run-in with the Sound team, and my ears haven't fully recovered yet."

Hayate looked at the clipboard and said, "Kabuto Yakushi, correct? Okay, you can go."

Kabuto turned around and left the room, well aware of the few people narrowing their eyes at him. He felt a spark of regret and remorse as he thought of what would happen, but dismissed it immediately.

Hayate coughed in order to turn the Genin's attention back to him. "Before we continue, from here on you fight as (cough) individuals, not as a team," Hayate said. "If no one else is withdrawing, (cough) we can start the preliminaries. Now, (cough) they will be one-on-one matches, and the winner (cough) of each match will advance to the third exam. This (cough) is no-holds-barred combat. Each pair of combatants (cough) will fight until one person (cough) admits defeat or is knocked out. Killing (cough) is allowed, but is frowned upon. If I decide (cough) a match is over, I will call it. Any fighting (cough) afterwards will be stopped with force. Now, from here on in, your (cough) matches will be determined (cough) randomly, and displayed on monitor above." He jerked his head, indicating the very monitor now being revealed by a section of the wall moving up.

When the monitor was completely revealed, names appeared in rapid succession above and below a versus symbol, each name replacing the one before it. After a few seconds, the screen displayed the names of the first two combatants. Hayate glanced up and said, "Sasuke Uchiha versus Yoroi Akado. Would both participants please remain here while the rest head to the upper gallery."

The teams headed up with the teams from Konoha on one of the walkways with the teams from Sand and Sound on the other. Each team was greeted by their senseis.

Kakashi, who still had his silver hair leaning to the left due to his headband covering his left eye and still wore the mask that hid the bottom half of his face, greeted Naruto and Sakura. "How long do you think he'll last?" he asked, referring to Yoroi.

"Against Sasuke? One, two minutes tops," Naruto replied.

Down on the floor, Sasuke measured up his opponent. Yoroi was dressed like Kabuto, except he wore a cloth over the lower half of his face and he wore his headband like a bandana.

"Scared, Uchiha?" Yoroi taunted.

"You should be," Sasuke shot back, raising his right hand and pointing his index and middle fingers at his opponent. "This will only take thirty seconds, at the most.

Yoroi narrowed his eyes. "We will see."

Hayate glanced between the two combatants. "Begin!" he commanded, jumping back.

Sasuke wasted no time and signed, shouting, "Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!" He put his hand to his mouth and blew a large fireball at Yoroi. Yoroi jumped over it, signing. When he landed, he rushed at the Uchiha, barely grazing his shirt with a chakra-coated hand. Sasuke wobbled a bit then jumped back, noticing the drain he felt to his chakra. "That's an interesting jutsu you have. But you need physical contact to steal my chakra."

"And that will only get easier," Yoroi taunted, suddenly right in front of Sasuke. He grabbed him by the neck, only to receive a kick in the groin. Groaning, he released the Uchiha, who proceeded to kick him in the head then slam his fist into Yoroi's stomach, sending him back. He then rushed him and kicked Yoroi in the back before spinning and slamming him to the ground with a fist, knocking him out.

"You were saying?" Sasuke taunted, smirking at his opponent.

"(cough) Winner: Sasuke Uchiha," Hayate said as medics came in and carried Yoroi out on a stretcher. Smirking, Sasuke walked up to his team.

"Not bad, Sasuke," Kakashi said. "You beat your opponent without displaying all of your techniques, as well as doing it quickly."

"Thanks, sensei," Sasuke said, looking up at the board, which now showed the next match.

Hayate looked at the board. "Kankuro versus Misumi Tsurugi. Will both combatants please descend to the floor?"

Both of the combatants walked down, glaring at each other the whole time. Misumi was dressed like Yoroi, with tthe only difference being his glasses were clear, showing his black eyes.

"Ready to lose?" Kankuro taunted.

"I could say the same for you," Misumi shot back.

"Really?" Kankuro asked, raising his eyebrows as he shrugged the pakage on his back off and held it upright with his hand on the top. "Prove it."

"I will."

Hayate started the match, and Misumi shot at Kankuro, his fist swinging. Kankuro blocked the strike with his free hand, only to shout "What?" as the fist started wrapping around his arm. Misumi started to bend unnaturally, and soon wrapped himself around Kankuro, preventing him from moving.

"I can dislocate my joints and control them with chakra. It's easy if I need to dodge an attack, or, say, break someone's neck," Misumi explained, tightening his grip on Kankuro's neck as he said the last part, implying a threat. "So, will you withdraw?"

"Go screw yourself," Kankuro said, and Mismui shrugged. A loud cracking noise was heard, making nearly everyone seen and unseen wince and widen their eyes as Kankuro's head drooped.

"I gave him the option, and he's only unconscious," Misumi explained when he saw Hayate's narrowed eyes.

"Well, you didn't do a good job, did you?" Kankuro taunted as his head suddenly spun around, making everyone jump.

"WHAT?" Misumi yelled as Kankuro burst, revealing a humanoid puppet with three eyes and its body covered by a dark brown cloth. The discarded package unfurled, revealing the real Kankuro, cupping his open left hand and facing it towards his puppet. 'He's a puppet master!'

Kankuro began clenching his hand, and the puppet began to squeeze Misumi, who shouted, "I give up!"

"(cough) Winner: Kankuro!" Hayate shouted as Kankuro released Misumi before glancing at Naruto and his team. _'Time for some recon,'_ Kankuro thought. Instead of heading back to his team, he instead headed up the walkway with the teams from Konoha, making everyone suspicious.

Naruto, instead, turned to Kakashi and said, "That was an interesting idea, switching himself with his puppet. But what would he have done if a fire jutsu was aimed at him?"

"I'm sure he has some ways around that," Kakashi said.

Kankuro, who had by then reached them, said, "Yeah, I have a few ways. By the way, I hope there's no animosity from before."

Naruto glanced at him. "I think you learned your lesson."

Kankuro's eye twitched, but he decided not to respond.

Hayate coughed and said, "Next match: Shino Aburame versus Zaku Abumi."

Kankuro frowned at the two as he looked at them. "Out of curiosity, who do you think will win this one?"

Naruto frowned as he thought. "Shino," he said after a few seconds.

"Hmm, interesting. I would have put my money on that Zaku guy, but that's only cause he's more of a mystery."

"Never underestimate an opponent," Naruto replied.

"Point."

Hayate looked at the combatants and shouted, "Begin!"

Zaku raised his hand, and a blast of air came from it, sending Shino reeling. However, Shino got up with only minor injuries. "It will take more than that breeze to defeat me," he said.

"How's this then?" Zaku said, charging both hands and sending a stronger blast at the Aburame, who almost casually walked out of the way.

"That was weaker than the last."

Zaku yelled wordlessly and attempted to blast Shino again, only to pause as he saw insects crawling on Shino's skin, seemingly coming out of his jacket.

"You noticed my parasitic destruction beetles," Shino said, as Zaku turned around to see more insects behind him. "They attack in swarms and devour their prey's chakra. If you want to survive this onslaught, surrender."

Zaku clenched his teeth and turned an arm towards both Shino and the insects behind him. "Don't mess with me!" he shouted as he prepared to send an air blast at them, only to widen his eyes as his arms exploded, rendering them useless. "What?" he groaned as he looked at his hanging arms, only to notice that there were insects plugging the holes in the center of his palms that let him shoot compressed air. Realization hit him like a brick. _'His explanation was a distraction to plug the channels!'_

"It's over," Shino said.

"You-!" Zaku spat, rushing at Shino, only to receive a backhanded punch in his face.

"Winner: Shino Aburame," Hayate said, watching as medics came in and took Zaku away on a stretcher.

"Man, what's the next match gonna bring, with these freaky abilities everyone's showing!" Naruto muttered.

"Like you're one to talk, with your chakra reserves," Sasuke jabbed.

Sakura and Hinata giggled at the boys' exchange, only to sober up when they saw the next match.

"Next match: Sakura Haruno versus Ino Yamanaka," Hayate announced.

Sakura looked at her one-time friend, now her rival in getting Sasuke's affections. Ino was smirking as she jumped the rail, deciding not to waste time. Sakura quickly followed, positioning herself so that she faced her team.

"Sakura, you should withdraw," Ino said. "Your forehead will only make you a bigger target."

Sakura's eye twitched at the jab to her forehead's size, but ignored it. "You should withdraw, Ino-pig. You're not even in the same league as me."

On the balcony, Kankuro chuckled. "Looks like we have a catfight on our hands."

"You have no idea," Naruto said, smirking. "Ino won't know what hit her."

Hayate started the match, and Sakura flew through hand signs, saying, "Water Style: Condensation!" Water splashed down on the field in large puddles, confusing everyone until Sakura shouted, "Water Style: Water Wolves!" The water on the ground converged into three spheres, which then formed into three wolves standing at Sakura's sides that then charged Ino, barking and growling.

Ino grabbed a kunai and started evading the wolves as best she could, slashing at them when they tried to bite her. One almost bit into her arm, but that was destroyed with a slash, only for Ino to yelp in pain as one of the two remaining wolves bit into her outstretched arm, slowing her down and allowing the other to bite her other arm. Ino kicked out at one, destroying it, and was about to punch the one holding her other arm when Sakura shouted, "Water Style: Liquid Bullets!" The wolf exploded into spheres the size of Ino's hand and rushed her, sending Ino reeling into the wall, where she dropped down, unconscious.

"Winner: Sakura Haruno," Hayate announced.

"Yeah!" Sakura shouted, pumping her fist as she walked up to her team.

"That was good, Sakura," Naruto said, nodding at her.

"Thanks, Naruto," Sakura said.

"Yeah, not bad," Sasuke affirmed, looking a bit embarrassed, which Naruto and Kakashi noticed, smirking.

_'Huh, so he likes Sakura. Guess he isn't gay after all,'_ Naruto thought.

_'What made you think he was?'_ Amidatelion asked.

_'He was never interested in girls much before,_' Naruto explained. _'But that may be because he was too obsessed with avenging his clan and killing his brother. Or he had no drive.'_

Naruto looked at the screen, smirked, and said, "Looks like I get to have fun."

His team and Kankuro looked at the board, only for Hayate to say, "Next match: Naruto Uzumaki versus Tenten."

Naruto gripped the railing, only for a gentle hand on his shoulder to stop him. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Hinata smiling at him. "Good luck," Hinata said, kissing his cheek.

"Thanks, Hinata-chan," Naruto said, giving her a one-armed hug before jumping down to the floor.

Tenten was about to head down when Lee said, "Tenten-chan, good luck."

Tenten smirked back and said, "Don't worry. I'm a kunoichi. I can handle it solo." She walked down to the floor and took her position in front of Naruto, facing the foreign ninja.

Through Naruto's eyes, Layle frowned as he took in Tenten's features. _'She seems so familiar. I swear I met one of her ancestors somewhere before, but where?'_

Naruto mentally shrugged. _'Maybe it'll come to you.'_

Naruto grinned at Tenten and said, "Don't think I'll go easy on you just because you're a girl."

Tenten grinned back and shot back, "I'd prefer it if you didn't."

Hayate looked between the two and thought, _'I got a feeling this match will be interesting.'_ "Begin!" he shouted, jumping back.

Tenten grabbed a scroll from her pouch and unfurled it, releasing various weapons, all of which she threw at Naruto. Naruto ducked and dodged, occaisionally flicking a weapon away with his gravity powers. Soon, all the weapons littered the ground around him. Tenten narrowed her eyes. _'How did he send some flying away from him? He didn't even touch them!'_

"Come on, that can't be all you got!" Naruto said, gesturing for her to bring it on.

Tenten growled a bit, then grabbed another scroll and flung her free hand back, bringing the weapons on the floor to her. "How's this then?" She unfurled the other scroll and sent even more weapons flying at Naruto along with her previous ones.

_'Whoa!'_ Naruto thought as he dodged and flung them away. _'How many does she have?'_ His eyes widened as weapons came at him from every angle. _'Oh crap!'_ he thought as he created a barrier around him just in time to stop the weapons, only to realize that they were pressing against it. _'Crap!'_ he thought. He then got an idea.

"Looks like your student has lost, my enternal rival!" Gai, a man the same age as Kakashi that looked like an older Lee with a Jonin vest, proclaimed.

"Don't count Naruto out yet, Gai," Kakashi replied as he watched the weapons inch closer to Naruto before they started spinning around him.

Tenten's eyes widened. "What the...?"

"Haaa!" Naruto shouted as the weapons shot away from him at high speeds, imbedding themselves in the walls and ceiling but not coming within five inches of anyone.

Tenten's jaw dropped. "How..." she started, but trailed off when she saw Naruto's ripped jacket, showing the crystal in his cheek and giving her the answer.

"You almost had me there, Tenten," Naruto said, rolling his right shoulder like his ancestor. He then dropped into a Taijutsu stance, though it was one almost unfamiliar to everyone. He stood with his left side facing Tenten, his left hand was positioned in front of his chest with his arm bent at a right angle towards the kunoichi with his other arm bent in the same angle but positoned behind him. His feet stood below each shoulder, bouncing very slightly.

Tenten narrowed her eyes again before pulling out a third scroll, opening it, and unsealing a sword. It had a two-and-a-half-foot double-edged blade with a half-foot design between the hilt and the blade. Tenten grabbed it and held it towards Naruto. "Let's see how you fare against this, then," she said, rushing him.

Naruto ducked under the initial swipe and attempted to sweep her legs, making her jump over and flip behind him as he pulled out a kunai to intercept her next swing. Tenten pulled back and feinted at Naruto's head then swung at his legs. Naruto jumped then dodged Tenten's stab, spinning away. "Not bad," Tenten said, smirking.

They traded blows for a while, neither of them landing a hit until Naruto did a double feint and slammed his gravity-infused fist into Tenten's stomach, sending her flying back. Unsteadily, she got back up, panting. Naruto stood where he was, panting as well, though not as much as Tenten.

_'He has more stamina than me, so wearing him out isn't a good option,'_ Tenten considered. _'Not to mention he's a Crystal Bearer. What can I do?'_ Then she got an idea. _'That could work.'_ She steadied herself then rushed him again, swinging her sword so that he couldn't do anything but dodge until she sweeped his legs and effectively pinned him to the ground with her sword at his throat. "It's over," she announced, smirking as she panted.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "You sure?" he asked, before vanishing in a puff of smoke.

"What!" Tenten exclaimed before a fist met her face and she was sent back and landed on the ground, too exhausted to get up.

Naruto stood were he hit Tenten, smirking slightly. Hayate called the match then. "Winner: Naruto Uzumaki."

"When did you create a clone?" Tenten asked, panting.

"When I blasted your weapons away," Naruto explained, walking over to her.

"Dang it."

Naruto reached out a hand, which Tenten accepted. "You're good. I look forward to a rematch," he said as he pulled her up. He dug in his pouch and pulled out a small brown spherical pill, which he handed to Tenten.

"Thanks," Tenten said, consuming it. Instantly she felt her energy return.

"No problem," Naruto said as they walked back up.

It was then that Layle realized who Tenten's ancestors were. _'Keiss and Belle,'_ he breathed as he thought about the sword.

_'So Tenten is related to your best friend and his wife,'_ Naruto thought, glancing at Tenten. _'She did say something similar to what Belle said, from what you told me.'_

"Great job, Naruto," Kakashi praised his student. "Well done."

"Thanks, sensei," Naruto said, then widened his eyes when he saw the names for the next match.

"Next match: Hinata Hyuga versus Neji Hyuga."

Hinata stiffened a bit and looked at her cousin, who glared at her before walking down.

Naruto, sensing her distress, hugged Hinata and said, "Don't worry, you'll do fine."

"Thank you, Naruto-kun," Hinata said before heading down as well.

Kankuro looked between Hinata and Neji. "So they're siblings?" he asked, noticing some similar facial features.

"Cousins, actually," Naruto said. "But their fathers were identical twins, so they can be mistaken for siblings."

"Must be rough, having to fight family," Kankuro said.

"Usually, but there's been bad blood between the main and branch families of their clan. Hinata-chan is in the main family, and Neji is in the branch family. Hinata-chan said that some main family members from the first generation made clan laws that favored them, and the branch family resents them for it even today," Naruto said, gripping the rail tightly.

Hayate looked between them. _'This could turn into a bloodbath.'_ "Begin!"

Down on the floor, Neji said, "Before we begin, I have something to say to you, Lady Hinata." Hinata looked at Neji, confused. "You should withdraw. You are not the type to lead, and you are too soft. You have a world-class inferiority complex and no self-confidence."

"That is where you are wrong, Neji-niisan," Hinata said. "This past month I have gained confidence, both in myself and in my friends."

"Hmph, you speak of that failure?" Neji spat venomously, referring to Naruto. "Once a failure, always a failure, just like you my dear cousin."

Naruto's grip on the rail tightened. He could handle the insults thrown at him, but not at Hinata. _'He's starting to tick me off.'_

"A leopard can't change it's spots no more than people can change who they are," Neji said. "You can't win. Fate will not allow it! You can't change your fate."

"You don't..." Hinata started.

"No one can change anything about themselves. All they can do is walk down the path destiny has set in store for them," Neji continued

"SHUT UP!" Naruto yelled, getting everyone's attention. "Who are you to tell her what she can and can't do? Fate is just a bunch of bull people use to hide behind when things go wrong. It doesn't control you, you control it! Hinata, kick his ass and prove him wrong!"

Hinata looked at her boyfriend before smiling. _'Thank you, Naruto-kun,'_ she thought.

Neji gritted his teeth. _'By Kami, he is annoying!'_ He turned back to Hinata to see the look in her eyes had changed. "So you will not back down? I am not to be held accountable for what happens."

Hinata activated her Byakugan, the veins around her eyes bulging. She slipped into a Taijutsu stance with her palms facing Neji and leaned back. "Neji-niisan, let's fight."

Neji frowned and entered into the same stance.

Lee gasped. "Of course. The Hyuga use the same style."

"Huh?" Kankuro asked.

"The Hyuga clan has a Taijutsu style called the Gentle Fist. Instead of attacking the muscles and bones, they attack something equally important: the chakra network, the energy lines that chakra flows through, much like our blood is carried through our viens. The network is closely woven with our vital organs, and any damage to the network will hurt our organs. Though anyone can learn the style, the Byakugan allows them to perfect it, because with it they can see the chakra network," Naruto explained as the fight started.

"They attack the network?" Kankuro asked in awe. "But how can that be dangerous?"

"Because there are 361 points on the chakra network that act as nodes," Kakashi said as Neji grunted as he received a light blow to the abdomen. "If struck, those nodes can halt or enhance the flow of chakra. Essentially, they can cut off person's chakra flow."

Hinata struck at Neji, slamming a palm strike into his abdomen, only to cough up blood as she felt a blow to her stomach. She swatted Neji's hand away and aimed another strike at his stomach, only for him to grab her arm and press a point on it. She smirked before vanishing in a poof of smoke.

"WHAT?" Neji exclaimed before suddenly leaning back as Hinata seemed to appear out of nowhere aiming a strike at his side and countered her, disabling a few nodes on her left arm before she retracted it.

Hinata jumped back, out of Neji's reach and tried clenching her left fist, to find that it was responding slowly. Thinking quickly, she looked up at Naruto, her eyes asking her question.

Naruto knew what she was silently asking, and nodded, smiling gently. "Show him what you can do, hime," he breathed.

Sakura glanced at Naruto, confused, until Hinata raised her right hand and fixed her chakra flow before rushing Neji and delivering palm strikes as fast as she could.

Neji grunted as he diverted her blows, thinking, _'She's faster than she was before. But not fast enough!'_ He then shifted his foot and began to go on the offensive. He struck at Hinata's chest, making her cough up blood, only to widen his eyes as a sphere of chakra coalesced in Hinata's right hand, which she thrust at him. _'WHAT? How does she know that?'_ he thought as he made to shut off the nodes in her right arm, only to grunt as the sphere impacted him and sent him back before destablizing and bursting, sending both of them flying back a few feet.

Neji grunted as he held his stomach. "Is that what you resort to? Stolen jutsu? You disgrace your clan and your village."

"That jutsu was not stolen. I learned it like anyone else," Hinata said, clutching her stomach.

"It does not matter either way. You will lose," Neji spat, charging her with eyes full of rage. Hinata didn't react in time and received a few palm strikes to her chest and chin, making her stumble back as she coughed up even more blood. "It's over."

"It's not over!" Hinata declared.

"You can barely stand. You have received too much damage to your organs. You have lost. That is fate. Now stop this pathetic acting!"

"Pathetic? Niisan, take a good look at yourself, and then tell me who's pathetic."

Neji growled wordlessly as he charged her. Up on the balcony, Naruto's eyes widened as he realized what Neji was about to do, and reacted, jumping off and landing in front of Hinata before punching Neji in the jaw and sending him back. Neji recovered and charged again, only this time to be stopped by Kakashi, Hayate, Gai, and Kurenai.

"That is enough, Neji," Gai said. "You told me you wouldn't let your family issues get into this." At this, Neji seemed to compose himself and relax, prompting the Jonin to let go of him.

Naruto turned and caught Hinata, who had collapsed after the Jonin stopped Neji. Naruto felt anger and rage rise to the surface as he held Hinata. Gently, he laid her down before leaking a killing intent great enough to make the rookies grab at their throats, growling, almost ferally, "Neji..." He turned around as a flash of blue light blinded everyone.

When the light receeded, everyone's eyes widened as they took in Naruto's appearance. A large, light-blue crescent-shaped crystal floated by the one in his cheek, with a wing of energy flowing from it. A second light-blue crystal in an ornate pattern floated in front of his chest with wings of energy flowing from it as well. A third crystal, this one golden-yellow and cylindrical, hovered over his back with golden energy in the shape of wings flowing from it. His right foot was encased in crystal that extended into a surfboard with his left foot on it. His hands and upper arms were completely covered with light-blue crystal, as were his chest, legs, and the majority of his face. His back was completely covered in golden-yellow crystal, and veins of both colored crystals flowed over his real veins. To finish the awe-ispiring look, his eyes were glowing a fierce light-blue, and he was floating several feet off the ground.

It was then that everyone noticed Naruto's face contorted in rage. Naruto lunged toward Neji, only to halt as all of the Jonin grabbed hold of Naruto to stop him from killing Neji, though Naruto's gravity powers weren't helping as he was using them to inch closer.

"Naruto, don't! It's not worth it!" Kakashi said, trying to get through to him. But Naruto just growled wordlessly. "Naruto!"

Then Hinata, in such a small voice that it was amazing she was heard at all, said, "N-no...Naruto-kun...d-don't."

After a few moments, Naruto dropped out of his advanced Hyper Mode and turned towards Hinata, picking her up gently. He glared at Neji. "Neji, you better pray she lives, or _I will make you pay,"_ he growled out before summoning a portal and walking through it, leaving a Shadow Clone to watch the remaining matches and to stop any more from getting out of hand.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto sat in Hinata's room in the hospital, looking at her unconscious face with worry. He didn't know how to help her. Why? Why did Neji have to try to kill her? Why... "Why am I in so much pain, even though I'm not hurt?"

"Because you are realizing how important she is to you," he heard Kakashi's voice say, and he looked to the door to find his sensei and team enter the room with Kurenai's team. He saw his clone dispell, and he took a few seconds to sort through the memories. Kiba lost to Temari; Shikamaru beat the kunoichi from Sound, Kin Tsuchi; Lee lost to Gaara, but his clone prevented Gaara from crushing Lee's left limbs; and Choji lost to the remaining Sound ninja, Dosu Kinuta. He felt a grim satisfaction upon learning who he was fighting first in the finals: Neji. Sasuke was fighting Gaara in the second match, followed by Shino facing Kankuro, Shikamaru against Temari, and Dosu against Sakura, with the winners of the last two facing each other.

Kakashi looked at Hinata. "How is she?"

"The doctors said they can minimize the damage as much as they can. After that..." Naruto trailed off, pain etched onto his face.

Everyone stood silent for a few seconds, realizing how much the whiskered blond prankster has changed.

After a minute, Kakashi said, "Naruto, I know how much it hurts, but you have to prepare for the finals in a month. At least increase the time you can stay in Hyper Mode. I know a guy who can help train you for that."

"Is he good?" Naruto asked, his voice hollow.

"The best for the job. He trained your father, after all," Kakashi said, getting everyone's attention.

"My father?" Naruto asked. Kakashi nodded. "He'll do."

"Sakura, I know a guy with a Water affinity who can help with your jutsus. I'll have him stop by your house tomorrow," Kakashi said, not taking his visble eye off Naruto.

"Okay," Sakura said, looking at the floor. 'I hope Hinata pulls through. I don't even want to think how crushed Naruto will be.'

"Sasuke, I'll be training you. Meet at our training grounds tomorrow."

"Sure, sensei," Sasuke said.

"You all have the rest of the day off. I'll see you later." Kakashi then left, an unreadable expression on his face. The others soon followed after that, staying long enough to try to reassure Naruto.

The rest of the day, Naruto sat in Hinata's room, hardly speaking. He just shook his head whenever someone told him he needed to go.

"Look, brat, if you don't leave the hospital right now, I'll-" one particularly nasty nurse spat, but was silenced with a glare. She then saw him take Hinata's hand in his and gently stoke it as he turned his head back to the blue-haired girl in the bed, a gentle expression on his face. After that, no one bothered him. One nurse even brought in a spare blanket for him to sleep in another bed with.

That night, Naruto fell alseep longing for Hinata to be okay.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: Chapter's done! Hope you liked it! Sorry to all the Hinata fans out there, but I had to do it. You'll find out why.**


	10. Before the Finals, Part 1

**A/N: And I'm back! Sorry for the wait. I've been busy, and was having trouble deciding on something for this chapter. You know what to do. Read and Review!**

0o0o0o0o0

"Hey, wake up," a male doctor said as he shook Naruto awake.

"Ngh... no... No!" Naruto almost shouted as he shot up, startling the doctor. He looked around and saw a sleeping Hinata in the hospital bed next to him, and visibly relaxed.

"Relax, Naruto, she is fine for now," the doctor said, noticing his gaze. "She has quite the will to live. Normally, someone with her injuries would have had trouble breathing sometime throughout the night, but there were no problems."

Naruto relaxed even more at that and looked at the doctor. "Thanks." He then got a good look at the doctor's brown hair and eyes. "Doctor Akane Fubashi?"

"You recognized me," Akane said, smirking.

"How couldn't I when you were one of the few who would treat me when I was in here?" Naruto shot back, smiling slightly as well.

"Point. Anyway, you have a visitor," Akane said, getting his attention.

"Who?"

"That would be me," a man said as he walked into the room. He had long white hair and was wearing a red jacket over a slightly dark green battle gi with a mesh shirt under it, jeans of the same green as the shirt with mesh under them as well, and wooden ninja sandals. The man was also wearing bracers on his arms and fingerless gloves, and was carrying a large scroll on his lower back. The man's face, which had red war paint in small straight lines from the bottom of his eyes, a wart near the left base of his nose, and a horned headband with the Kanji for 'oil' on it.

"Who are you?" Naruto asked.

"I'm Jiraiya, the Toad Sage, kid," the man answered. "Kakashi asked me to train you."

"Okay. Let me get cleaned up and changed," Naruto said, hopping out of the bed. "Would you mind leaving?" he asked.

"Sure. I'll be at the hot springs when you're done," Jiraiya said, vanishing in a swirl of leaves.

Akane looked at Naruto. "You know you're lucky to get training from the Toad Sanin, right?"

"Kinda, yeah. I don't get why they get so much respect. Any ninja can reach their level if they put their mind to it." As he said this, he used a few jutsu Kakashi taught him to get cleaned up without exposing himself.

"Not any ninja," Akane corrected him as he pulled the changing screen so that Naruto could change. "There are many ninja that have blocks, and have to compensate for them. They can't advance past those blocks."

"Well, they can still get to their level in at least taijutsu," Naruto said as he changed. Soon, he passed around the screen in his clothes. He walked over to Hinata, pecked a kiss on her forehead and whispered, "Sweet dreams, princess." He walked out of the room, leaving a surprised Akane standing in it.

_'So the rumors are true. They really are dating,'_ Akane thought as he left.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto walked around the hot springs, looking for Jiraiya. _'Why did he tell me to meet him here?'_

_'Probably for water-walking training,'_ Takeshi answered through their link. Even though he had his own body, he was mostly still sealed inside Naruto, so they could still talk telepathically. _'The hot waters usually give people motivation.'_

_'I just hope he really can help with Hyper Mode. That first time was draining.'_

_'That's what happens after you first enter it,'_ Layle said, nodding mentally. _'You have to train to increase the time you can stay in it.'_

At that point, Naruto, and through him his guests, heard a man giggling pervertedly. Naruto turned a corner and saw Jiraiya looking through a hole in the fence of the women's side of the hot springs.

Althea growled and said, _'That pervert! Oh, if I had a body...'_ She trailed off, muttering about what she'd do to the Sanin, making everyone mentally wince.

_'I'll get him,'_ Naruto thought. He inhaled and shouted loudly, "Why the hell are you peeking on women in the hot springs, you perverted old man!"

The women in the hot springs screamed as several kunoichi appeared and started beating up Jiraiya, who screamed as the women hit him while Naruto and the others laughed. After several minutes, the women started leaving, with several of them thanking Naruto for alerting them to the pervert's pressence.

Jiraiya groaned as he stood up, his face black and blue from the beating. "Why did you do that?" he asked as he used a healing jutsu to heal his wounds.

"You were peeking," Naruto deadpanned.

"Whatever," Jiraiya said, dropping the matter. He grabbed Naruto's arm and vanished, taking Naruto with him.

They reappeared in a forest near the village with a large waterfall and a river flowing. Jiraiya let go of Naruto and said, "We'll be training here for the month. I know about your 'guests' from the Hokage, so you can warp here every day."

"Fine, but why did he tell you?" Naruto asked, narrowing his eyes.

"To make things easier. Now, what do you know about Hyper Mode?"

"That a Bearer can only first enter it if near a Crystal Reactor or when feeling extreme anger or rage, can be in it for five minutes when they first enter it, and are extremely exhausted after."

Jiraiya nodded. "Right. Now, there are two kinds of Myper Modes: basic and advanced. A basic Hyper Mode is one that a Crystal Bearer with only one power can enter. In other words, Layle's Hyper Mode is a basic-type. An advanced Hyper Mode is one that activates two or more at the same time. You can enter it, since you have more than one Bearer power. But there's a cost to entering an advanced Hyper Mode. The time you can be in it depends on how many Hyper Modes you can activate simultaneously. For example, if a Bearer entered Hyper Mode using two of their powers, they can only stay in it for half the time of their basic one. If it's three, the time is one-third of the basic's. You keeping up?"

Naruto nodded. "Sounds simple enough. How can a Bearer increase the amount of time they can stay in it?"

"That's the tough part. You have to fight either summons, like Bahamut or Ramuh, or someone stronger than you while in Hyper Mode. Since it's not a good idea to fight a summon alone right now, you'll be fighting me. I'll even teach you a few Wind jutsu, as well as help with your chakra control. Sound good?"

"Sure."

"Good. First though, you have to learn to enter Hyper Mode at will, and that's relatively simple. Just channel power into a crystal and let its power flow through you."

Naruto did as instructed, the crystal in his cheek shining brightly until he was engulfed in light. Jiraiya covered his eyes and when it faded, he looked to see Naruto in a basic Hyper Mode incredibly similar to Layle's.

Jiraiya nodded. "Alright. Get ready. Let's see what you got." With that he charged at Naruto, starting the training.

0o0o..._Timeskip, one week later_...o0o0

Naruto laid down in his bed, exhausted. True to his word, Jiraiya had pushed Naruto to his limits throughout the week. They had increased the time he could stay in Hyper Mode from five minutes to thirty-five, which was good progress, according to Jiraiya and Layle. Tomorrow he had the day off, and hewas going to visit Hinata in the hospital then. Yawning, he quickly fell asleep, unaware of what was happening in the hospital.

0o0o0

A cloaked figure walked silently through the hallways, alert and scanning for anyone watching it. Finding no one, it entered a room, revealing a sleeping patient. It walked to the bed and grabbed the clipboard at the foot of the bed, which read "Hinata Hyuga" as the patient's name. Looking over the diagnosis, it scoffed mentally as it read how well the doctors did. _'If only the legendary Slug Princess was here...'_ it thought, setting the board down.

It turned to the patient, looking over her with a diagnostic jutsu. Finding the source of the problem, the figure activated a healing jutsu and began working on the patient, watching as color seemed to return to her face if the light given off by the jutsu was anything to go by.

After a few seconds and as the figure ended the jutsu, the door opened and a nurse gasped before screaming for help, alerting the doctors and ANBU in the hospital. Swearing, the figure jumped over the bed and out the window, barely dodging the ANBU's attempt to aprehend it.

It landed in the street, startling a few drunk villagers, and ran past, fully intent on getting away. It turned a corner as ANBU pursued. When the ANBU turned to follow, they found a deserted street. One tried to dispell any Genjutsu the figure might have used, but only revealed that no Genjutsu was used.

Radioing in the situation, they spread out, one of them heading back to the hospital. The ANBU climbed in through the open window in Hinata's room to find several doctors and three ANBU in there.

One of the ANBU saw the new arrival and asked in a gruff male voice, "Well? What happened?"

"The intruder seems to have vanished," the new ANBU replied in a feminine voice, throwing back her hood to reveal purple hair that fell into her cloak. "What about the patient?"

"That's the odd thing. We can't find any trace of a poison or venom. The only change is that Miss Hyuga's lungs and heart have been fully repaired, even though we none of the doctors did any more than the surgury and three healing jutsu," a female doctor answered, sounding completely perplexed.

"Maybe that was the intruder's doing," another doctor ventured.

"Then why would it hide?" a third asked strongly.

"Perhaps it didn't want anyone to know who it was? How should I know?"

"Enough!" the gruff ANBU said as the second opened his mouth. "We can't rule that out, but we still need to report this. Go back to your duties." He turned to the purple-haired ANBU as the doctors left. "Cat, you stay here and protect Miss Hyuga along with Bear."

"Yes, captain," Cat and Bear responded, then vanished as they hid themselves.

"Let's go," the gruff ANBU said to the remaining ANBU, and they vanished in a swirl of leaves.

0o0o0o0o0

Hiruzen sighed as he read the report. How did an intruder get into the hospital, undetected, and proceeded to use a jutsu to seemingly heal Hinata? Though he was somewhat grateful as that was the truth, much to the confusion of everyone who knew. The ANBU were keeping an eye on the hospital as well as looking for the intruder, but to no avail, as he had seemingly vanished.

"At least nothing bad happened," he thought out loud.

0o0o0o0o0

Orochimaru glared at his spy, his fingers twitching slightly. "Do you realize what you have done? You have only made it more difficult to execute my plans. I hope you understand what the consequences can be," he spat at Kabuto.

Kabuto's eyes widened. "Please, no! I'm begging you, please don't!" he said, throwing himself to his knees.

"You had better not do anything else to harm the plan, or she will die. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir. I won't," Kabuto answered hollowly.

"Good," Orochimaru said, grinning evilly. "Now go."

Kabuto quickly left, and Jegran entered. "You're not worried that he could have leaked the plans?" he asked incredulously

"Impossible," Ororchimaru argued. "He doesn't know much, but he can effectively kill himself and draw attention from himself if he gets too much of it."

"That is impressive, but I don't understand why he bothered to do such a thing."

"Perhaps loyalty, or compassion. It doesn't matter, I suppose. That entire village will be destroyed."

"Hmph, I guess you're right," Jegran conceeded.

"I want you to watch him so he does not try anything else. The rendezvous is in two days. Make sure no one knows of it or even hears the meeting as it takes place."

"Hmph. Like anyone will survive if they do." With that, Jegran left.

_'Soon, I will crush that village,'_ Orochimaru thought before vanishing as well.

0o0o0o0o0

"Come on, Naruto, your aim is better than that!" Jiraiya taunted as he dodged another boulder thrown by Naruto in Hyper Mode.

"How's this then?" Naruto challenged as he lifted more boulders before throwing them at Jiraiya. Jiraiya dodged as best as he could before jumping over one, his eyes widening as three more came at him in such a way that gave him no room to dodge.

_'That was clever, but not good enough!'_ he thought as he flew through hand signs and shouted, "Ninja Art: Needle Jizo!" His long white hair began moving and engulfed him with spikes of his hair sticking out in various places. The boulders collided with him and he flew back, the boulders attatched to him as he spun and bounced a bit before settling on the ground. The boulders then exploded, revealing Jiraiya, perfectly fine. "Pretty good, kid, but you need to do better than that."

At that moment, they heard someone calling out and quietened. "Naruto-kun? Is that you?"

Naruto's eyes lit up in joy, but also confusion. He had not been able to visit Hinata in the hospital yesterday since they had barred visitors for the day due to some incident, but he was glad he could see her now. He was confused as to how she knew where he was though.

Hinata, dressed in a purple tee-shirt and blue jeans, entered the clearing, looking at Naruto in wonder.

Naruto quickly exited out of Hyper Mode and embraced Hinata, making the girl blush badly.

"Hinata-chan, what are you doing here?" Naruto asked as he stopped hugging her, instead holding her at arms length. "Shouldn't you still be in hospital? And how did you find me anyway?"

"I was released earlier today, and Lord Hokage told me that you would be training in this area," Hinata explained, smiling at him. "Somehow, I'm fully recovered."

Naruto looked confused. "How? I tried visiting yesterday, but no visitors were allowed. The ANBU said something about an intruder during the night."

"I don't know," Hinata said, frowning slightly.

Jiraiya cleared his throat at that moment, getting their attention. "Well, I'm glad your girlfriend is better, but we should be training, Naruto. Hinata, you can stay if you want."

"But I..." Naruto started before sagging and almost collapsing onto Hinata, who caught him and was instantly worried.

"Naruto-kun? A-are you okay?" she asked as she laid him down.

"Yeah...I'll be fine," Naruto answered, panting a bit. "Hyper Mode is really draining. I'll be up again in a few minutes."

True enough, after several minutes, Naruto was back on his feet, ready to spar again. Getting an idea, however, Jiraiya raised his hands. "Wait a second, Naruto. How about I teach you two more jutsu?"

Naruto looked confused and asked, "What jutsu?"

Jiraiya stretched out a hand and cupped it, letting chakra flow around the palm and condensing it into a sphere. "This. It's called..."

"Rasengan," Naruto finished, forming one as Hinata did the same.

Jiraiya's mouth hit the ground. "Who taught you that?" he asked in shock.

"I found a scroll written in my father's hand detailing it," Naruto explained. "Hinata-chan and I mastered it around the same time."

Jiraiya shook his head. "That was a bit dangerous. Not everyone can use it. You two could have hurt yourselves!" He frowned at them. The two Genin looked down before Jiraiya continued. "However, I am proud that you mastered it so far."

The two blushed a bit in embarrassment. "Thanks."

"Well, I guess I don't have to worry about teaching you that. Now the other jutsu is..." Jiraiya started, biting his thumb and making handsigns before slamming his hand on the ground. "Summoning Jutsu!" he proclaimed as a blast of smoke obscured him from the Genin's eyes. When the smoke cleared, Jiraiya stood on top of a large orange toad with wristguards on its front legs and a scroll in it's mouth.

The toad looked at Jiraiya and tossed the scroll up to him. "So you want someone to sign the contract?" it asked.

"Yeah, Gama. It's Naruto," Jiraiya said, making the toad look at the Genin.

"Ah. I see. Well, if that's all, I'll see you later." With that, Gama vanished in a poof of smoke.

Jiraiya landed on the ground with the scroll in his hands and set it on a flat surface before unfurling it. "Here, Naruto, write your name in the first blank spot and then press the fingers of your writing hand below it," Jiraiya instructed.

Naruto looked at the scroll, then bit his thumb, writing his name before dotting the rest of his fingers and placing it below his signature.

"Naruto-kun, look at who signed before you," Hinata said, pointing to the name to the left of her fiance's. Naruto looked at it and widened his eyes before smiling. The spot read, _'Minato Namikaze.'_

"I thought you might like that," Jiraiya said, nodding as he rolled up the scroll before dismissing it. "Now..."

0o0o..._that night_...o0o0

Naruto and Hinata sat at their dining room table, eating dinner when Hinata suddenly looked sad. "What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" Naruto asked, looking at her.

"I... are you really going to kill Neji-niisan?" Hinata asked timidly.

Naruto's eyes flashed in slight anger, but he shoved it away. "I honestly don't know," he said, putting down his utensils.

"Please don't," Hinata said. "He's family."

"He tried to kill you," Naruto argued. "I can't easily forgive that."

"I-it's not his fault," Hinata said, shaking her head. "He wasn't always like this." She looked at Naruto with pleading eyes. "Please don't kill him."

Naruto looked at Hinata. He sighed. "Alright, if it's that important to you. But what could have made him like that?"

Timidly, Hinata explained how she had almost been kidnapped by the Hidden Cloud Village's ambassador almost ten years ago, how her father had killed him, how Cloud had demanded his head, how Hizashi, his twin brother and Neji's father, sacrificed himself despite Hiashi's protests, and how Neji assumed his father had not chosen to do what he did.

"That's quite the story," Naruto said. He sighed again. "Don't worry. I won't kill him."

Hinata smiled and kissed him on the forehead. "Thank you, Naruto-kun."

Naruto gave her a one-armed hug. "It's alright, Hinata-chan. Now come on. Let's get some sleep."

As they headed up, Naruto received a loud telepathic message from Takeshi. _'Naruto, I found some suspicious coffins in a storage warehouse. Get over here!'_

Naruto visibly sighed and kissed Hinata. "I'll be right back. Takeshi found something."

"Be careful," Hinata warned as Naruto ran down the stairs and out of the house. She sighed as she walked back down and sat down on a couch, deciding to wait for him.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto ran as fast as he could to where Takeshi said he was without alerting suspicion. Reaching the place, he sensed Takeshi just as the fox reached out of the shadows and pulled him into them silently, shushing Naruto as he did.

_'What is it?'_ Naruto asked through their link.

_'Him,'_ Takeshi said, as they looked around the corner to find Orochimaru talking to Kabuto and the Sound team minus Dosu. Suddenly Orochimaru punched Zaku and Kin, knocking them out and dragging them into a warehouse with Kabuto following him.

Takeshi and Naruto carefully walked over to the door to see what as happening, only to jump back as a red crystal in the shape of an arm made a grab for them.

"Tch, I missed," a hard voice said he walked out. Naruto's eyes widened as he saw the Lilty. "It seems we have some rats to deal with."

"You...Jegran," Naruto said as he clenched his fists.

Jegran smirked as he said, "You are correct. It seems fate was kind enough to give me yet another chance. Of course," he added as he slid his weapon of his back and held it in his left hand, "you won't live long enough to see me achieve my destiny." He lunged, swinging his weapon at Naruto with surprising speed.

Naruto ducked and jumped back, barely avoiding having his head cut off as Takeshi slammed a fist into Jegran's stomach then kicking him back. Naruto jumped forward as he extended his gravity powers into a sword to better fight, only to be dragged back by a Shadow Clone of Takeshi.

_'No, Naruto,'_ Takeshi ordered. _'Find a way in and stop whatever that snake bastard is doing.'_

_'What about you?'_

_'This body is only a medium. If it dies I just end up in the seal again. Go!'_

Nodding mentally, Naruto jumped away and started looking for a way in away from the fight.

Jegran moved to run after Naruto, but Takeshi appeared in front of him and knocked him back. "Your fight's with me, bastard."

"Very well. I'll kill you first, then the brat. It doesn't matter." Jegran readied himself, then lunged at Takeshi.

0o0o..._later_...o0o0

Naruto stmubled as he entered his house, carrying an unconscious girl with long black hair. The girl wore a dark grey vest and grey camo shorts with a grey camo scarf around her neck and had a Sound headband on her forehead.

Hinata looked at Naruto and asked, "What happened?" She stood up and helped Naruto place the girl on the couch, recognizing her face. "Kin Tsuchi?"

"Yeah. Orochimaru locked her, Zaku, and another ninja inside some weird coffins and left with Kabuto. I was able to get her out, but the coffins sank into the ground."

"Where's Takeshi?"

"His body got destroyed by Jegran," Naruto said. Hinata gasped. "Yes, it was Jegran. Somehow he's alive again."

_'Bastard was just lucky that I couldn't use too much chakra,'_ Takeshi growled.

_'I know,'_ Naruto agreed.

"Why did you bring her here?" Hinata asked.

"Orochimaru is planning something. She may know what."

"But why not turn her in?"

Naruto shook his head. "Too suspicious. They may find out and change their plans."

"But..." Hinata tried argueing, but understood Naruto's logic. "Alright."

Naruto hugged Hinata. "Come on. It looks like we're sleeping in here tonight."

With that the two gathered some futons and fell asleep quickly, their hands interlinked as all the occupants slept.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: There you go! I may not be able to post for a while. I'm working on an original story, and college will start again soon. I'll do what I can!**


	11. Before the Finals, Part 2

**A/N: Sorry about the wait! College is cutting into my time. I'll try to work on my stories as best I can. **

0o0o0o0o0

Kin moaned as she felt herself wake up, and opened her eyes to find herself inside someone's house. She looked around, taking in the furniture and doors, before sitting up slowly. She winced as her body protested against the action, but managed to sit up fully. She looked at a clock, and realized it was half past noon.

Suddenly, she heard a door open, and three people walked into the room. Her eyes widened as she recognized the two that were her age. Naruto Uzumaki and Hinata Hyuga were in conversation with a man with red semi-spiky hair and red eyes with slitted pupils.

The man looked and saw Kin sitting up. "You're awake. That's good," he said as he sat down in one of the chairs, with Naruto and Hinata sitting on a couch next to Kin's.

"W-who..." Kin started, wincing under the man's gaze.

"My name is Takeshi," the man said, "and we have some questions for you. Namely about what Orochimaru and that Lilty are doing. I know you just woke up, but time is not on our side."

Kin hesitated. She would be considered a traitor if she said anything. On the other hand, Orochimaru had shoved her into a coffin and left her to die, not to mention she hated her village. "I-I don't know much..." she said, not looking at anyone. "But Orochimaru is planning to invade the Hidden Leaf Village. That... Lilty is helping him for some reason. They seem to have made an alliance. They... also recruited the Sand Village, but I think they are planning to betray them. Orochimaru is planning to pose as the Kazekage, and that Lilty will be near him. That's all I know for sure."

Takeshi looked at Kin, his gaze searching for any hint of a lie. After a few seconds, he nodded. "Alright. Thank you. Naruto, let's go tell the Hokage."

"Alright," Naruto said, before placing a kiss on Hinata's cheek, and left as Takeshi used the Body Flicker technique to teleport them.

Hinata, after toning down her blush, smiled kindly at Kin and asked, "What do you want for lunch, Kin?"

0o0o0o0o0

Hiruzen sighed as he finished his paperwork... for now. The Daimyo had been informed two weeks ago of Naruto's choice, and while he and Keirei were a bit disappointed, they both accepted it. A swirl of leaves interrupted his thoughts, and Takeshi and Naruto appeared, both of them wearing serious faces. Takeshi glanced at the walls and twitched, causing Hiruzen to nod and send the ANBU away before activating the security seals.

"What happened?" Hiruzen asked.

"Orochimaru," Takeshi said before explaining what had occured the previous night and what Kin told them.

Hiruzen slumped in his chair. "I see. We need to prepare without them finding out."

"I can make bodies for Layle, Amidatelion, and Althea with Blood Clones," Naruto offered.

"That would work, but Orochimaru will try to kill me, so I-" Hiruzen started.

"I need to settle things with him," Takeshi said, his eyes blazing.

"Takeshi, if I had stopped him, you would still have Mirei and Genshi. It's my fault."

"No," Takeshi said. "You are not responsible for that. Orochimaru and Jegran are."

"But still, I am Hokage. If I do not fight-"

"You don't have to. Just be in a place where you can best order your ninja."

"How would I get there?" Hiruzen asked, realizing what Takeshi was thinking.

Takeshi looked up. "I have an idea..."

0o0o0o0o0

Sasuke panted as the jutsu in his hand dissipated, his Sharingan fading.

"Pretty good, Sasuke," Kakashi complimented as he surveyed the ten-foot tall boulder Sasuke had been practicing on. Three holes were bored into it, two of them about three feet in diameter and piercing straight through it. The third was half the size of the other two, and only reached one-third of the way though it. "You can use two at full power, and one at half. That's impressive for your age."

"Thanks," Sasuke said, slumping in exhaustion.

"You're welcome," Kakashi said, eye-smiling at his student. "Take a break. You've earned it."

"No, not yet," the young boy said, swallowing a food pill. "There's something I need to test." Sasuke stood up and began running through hand signs, but Kakashi grabbed his hands.

"Rest first, Sasuke. You can test whatever jutsu you want later."

"But-"

"Sasuke, that was not a suggestion."

Sasuke sighed, then sat against one of the rocks in the area he and Kakashi were training in. He looked up at the sun, noting the time. "Can I start in an hour?"

Kakashi glanced up, then said, "I suppose. We'll work on whatever that jutsu is for an hour. Sound good?"

Sasuke grunted, a sign that he had no problems with that. He remained quiet for the next few minutes until he asked, "Sensei?"

"Yes?" Kakashi responded, his nose in his book.

"There are some things I want to ask you."

"About?"

"The first is...girl problems," Sasuke said shyly, slightly blushing as he looked anywhere but at his sensei.

Kakashi, understanding the seriousness, closed his book. "Explain, please."

"Well..." Sasuke started, hesitating, "you know I don't like fangirls." Kakashi nodded. It was common knowledge that Sasuke had many fangirls, Sakura and Ino being his biggest. "At first, I hated that I was put on our team, mainly because it had Sakura. But over time, as I got to know her better, I began to like how she treated me, even if I didn't realize it then. I don't know why, but...I like seeing her happy, and I feel strange when she smiles at me. I don't like it when she's sad, either, but I don't know what to say to cheer her up. It's just...confusing." Sasuke looked at Kakashi, wanting him to explain.

Kakashi looked at Sasuke, lettng what the boy said sink in. "Hmm. That is a problem. Well, I can't tell you what to do, but I can help you figure it out, Sasuke." Kakashi looked up, a sad look on his face as the boy next to him looked at him. "You know that my sensei was the Fourth Hokage. My teammates were Obito Uchiha and Rin Norita. Rin had a huge crush on me, and Obito had a crush on her, similar to how this team was, before Naruto started dating Hinata. After the mission to destroy the Kannabi Bridge, we started dating. For a while, we were happy. I wanted Rin to be happy more than anything else. I hated when she was sad, and loved it when she smiled at me. I would have done anything for her." He looked at Sasuke. "Compare the similarities between the situations, and you'll know what to do."

Sasuke didn't understand what Kakashi was saying, but he nodded. "What happened to her?"

Kakashi sighed. "She died three years after the Fox attacked. I had proposed a month earlier, but she and her team were killed while on a medical mission to a village." Kakashi hung his head, upset that he couldn't save her.

"I'm sorry," Sasuke said. "I shouldn't have asked."

"No... it's fine," Kakashi said, shaking his head. "What else did you want to ask?"

Sasuke asked, "How did you get your Sharingan?"

"Obito gave it to me as he was dying. My real eye had been destroyed, and he had Rin transplant his into my eye socket. He died during the mission to Kannabi Bridge."

The two stayed silent after, absorbing the information they gave and were given.

Eventually, Sasuke said, "There's one more thing I want to ask."

"What?"

"How long have you known about Naruto's tenant?"

Kakashi stared at his student, shocked. Whatever he was expecting, it hadn't been that. "When did you..."

"After the forest. He told all of the rookies."

Kakashi slumped. "I knew from the beginning about the Fox." He paused, then asked, "Do you hate him?"

"No." Sasuke shook his head. "How can I hate someone for something out of his control?"

"I feel the same," Kakashi said.

0o0o0o0o0

Sakura slumped as she took a break next to a river in a training ground. Izumo Kamizuki, her temporary sensei, had taught her several Water jutsu over the last few weeks. She had been skeptical about being taught by one of the proctors, but Izumo said he was only a proctor for the first exam. He now had her begin training to control her element, first by learning how to create a whirlpool in a river by only using her chakra. He said basic mastery was when she could hold a three-foot diameter, four foot deep one for at least a minute. She was stuck at only half of that, and frustrated that she couldn't progress.

"Trouble?" Izumo asked, sitting next to her.

"I can't hold the whirlpool any longer than thirty seconds," Sakura panted, upset.

"I didn't expect you to master it in a month, Sakura," Izumo said. "Reaching thirty seconds in two weeks is very impressive for your age."

"Really?" Sakura asked, surprised, looking at her brown-haired sensei.

"Of course," Izumo said, nodding.

"But, how come I can't control it any longer?"

Izumo gained a thoughtful look. "Well, you were rotating it to the right, but you could be a left-rotation type."

"Huh?" Sakura asked, confused.

Izumo explained, "Chakra coils can spiral either left or right, and going against the spiral can be bad. You usually spend more chakra going against it than with it, because you fight against your coils' natural current. Try rotating it the other way." He handed her a food pill.

Taking the food pill, Sakura submerged her hand into the river and concentrated. Seconds later, water began swirling in the center, forming a distinct circle three feet in diameter. Soon, the circle caved as water was forced down, forming a whirlpool. Izumo watched the water closely, noting when the whirlpool met the required size and starting a mental timer.

Sakura began straining under the exertion, a few strands of sweat trailing down her face. Soon, she let the current dissipate, panting. "How... long was... was that?" she asked, falling back against a tree.

"One minute, thirty seconds," Izumo said, impressed. "Let's end today's training here." He gave her another food pill, which she consumed gratefully.

"Okay," she said, letting her strength return. After several minutes, she stood up.

"Take tomorrow off," Izumo advised. "We'll start another jutsu three days from now. Alright?"

"I'm not complaining, but why not the day after tomorrow?"

"I have an appointment that day."

"Oh, okay," Sakura said, not noticing the small blush on her new sensei's face.

"Alright, see you." With that, Izumo vanished in a swirl of leaves.

0o0o0o0o0

Naruto stood in the backyard, his hands close to his heart as Kin, Hinata, and Takeshi stood several yards away. "Alright, here it goes," Naruto said as a purple disk formed between his hands. Soon the air in front of him began to crack as the purple disk vanished and a light-blue one ten feet in diameter appeared between the cracks. Naruto grunted from the effort and colapsed to his knees, summoning more power. He flung his arms wide as he yelled, "HAAH!"

At that moment, the portal split in three pieces, one of them expanding a foot, and the others shrinking, one of them to eight feet and the last to four feet. A figure burst from each portal, their forms shrouded until the portals disappeared.

One was large, easily twice the size of Takeshi's human form. It had dark brown horns that jutted out the sides of its head and continued before curving behind it. Short spikes dug out of its shoulders. It had light-brown skin, and large, clawed hands. Muscles rippled along its figure, giving a lasting impression of strength. Instead of feet, its legs, which bended backwards, ended in black hooves. Its hair seemed to be made of fire, which also sprouted along the back end of its forearms. Its face consisted of pupil-less yellow eyes, a human-like nose, and sharp teeth showing in an ever-pre It wore simple dark-brown shorts and bracers on its wrists.

The second, easily female, had sky-blue skin and waist-length dark blue hair, though not as dark as Hinata's, with a willowy figure. She wore a tight, light-purple mid-rif shirt and a tight swimsuit-like pair of shorts, enough to keep her modesty, but still leaving plenty of skin, as well as showing off her assests. Decorated here and there along her forearms were several glittering snowflakes.

The third stood on all-fours and resembled a cat, reaching up to Naruto's knees when he stood. It's fur was mostly the same color as the woman's skin, except for a white patch on its chest and continuing to its navel. It had a ruby embedded in its forehead, and its eyes were black. It also had three flat, feather-like tails.

The fist one looked around. "Who summoned us?" it asked in a deep voice, noticing the other summons.  
"I don't recognize that signature."

"Look at the blond behind you, Ifrit," Takeshi said, approaching Naruto, who was out of breath and sweating from the exertion.

The summons turned around and saw Takeshi. "Takeshi! It's been a long time." He looked at Naruto. "He summoned us? He's just a child!" Ifrit scoffed dismissively.

"Don't be so quick to dismiss him, Ifrit," the woman said, pointing at the crystal in Naruto's cheek. "He is a descendant of Layle."

Ifrit looked at the crystal. "Hmph. So he is. I suppose introductions are in order. I am Ifrit, djinn of Fire."

"I am Shiva, Mistress of Ice," the woman said, smiling kindly. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Hi, I'm Carbuncle!" the cat said exitedly, bouncing on its feet a bit.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki Sol Alfitaria," Naruto introduced himself.

"Hello, I'm Hinata Hyuga," Hinata said, bowing.

"I-I-I'm Kin Ts-Tsuchi," Kin stammered, overwhelmed.

"May I ask how you summoned us?" Ifrit asked, then paused as he sensed something. "No, wait. I sense Amidatelion's power. But how can that be?"

"I'll show you," Naruto said, drawing blood from his arm and letting it pool before running through hand signs. "Blood Clone Jutsu!" Naruto announced, and three clones began forming from his blood. Halfway through, Naruto began a second set, and said, "Soul Release Jutsu!" Three orbs, each a different color, flew into the clones, and began transforming them. A soft glow covered their forms, and when they faded, Amidatelion, Layle, and Althea stood in front of the summons.

The summons stared for a few seconds, then Ifrit began laughing. "Hahaha! I see, boy. I can assume you taught him those, Takeshi?"

"I did," Takeshi said.

"W-wait a second!" Kin said, her eyes wide as her mind caught up with what she was seeing. She pointed at Naruto. "You're Layle's last living descendant, and you brought him, Lady Althea, and Amidatelion back to life? And that's why you can summon them?" she asked, pointing to the ones she was referring to as she said their names.

"Sort of. It's hard to explain, Kin," Naruto said, but explained as best he could, leaving out his and Takeshi's connection.

Ifrit laughed. "I see. It must be a sign of the Crystal's will. In any case, it is good to see you again, Layle."

"I can say the same," Layle said.

"Takeshi, where is Mirei?" Shiva asked, noticing the absence of the fox's lover.

Takeshi's face fell. "She...she's no longer with us."

The summons faces fell too. "I'm so sorry," Shiva said sincerely, tears threatening to escape.

"How? You are the strongest of the Biju, and she was no pushover herself," Carbuncle said, tails drooping.

Kin coughed in surprise, despite the atmosphere. Naruto shot her a look that said he'd explain later, making her drop what she was about to say.

"She and my kit were killed by Jegran and a man named Orochimaru," Takeshi said.

"WHAT? How is Jegran alive AGAIN?" Ifrit roared in anger after a short, stunned silence.

"I don't know. Probably Orochimaru's doing," Takeshi said, before adding, "That's partly why you were summoned."

"Which is?"

Takeshi looked at them, eyes hardening. "We need your help..."

0o0o0o0o0

_Timeskip, day of the finals..._

The Chunin Exam finalists minus Sasuke stood in the center of a large stadium behind a Jonin with shoulder-length brown hair and brown eyes who wore the standard outfit for his rank with his headband worn like a bandana. He also had a senbon hanging in his mouth.

"Stand tall, you lot. Today, this is your show," he said to the Genin behind him before raising his voice to address everyone in the stadium. About half of the village was in attendance, as well as various lords and nobles from many countries. Even the Kazekage, leader of the Hidden Sand Villlage was here. He then got everyone's attention and gave a short speech for the crowd. "Now, let us begin the first match! Naruto Uzumaki versus Neji Hyuga. All the remaining participants, please leave for the waiting area."

After the participants left, he turned to the Genin remaining. "Are both of you ready?" Both Neji and Naruto nodded, neither of them breaking the glare they were sending to the other.

Up in the stands, Hiashi spoke to his youngest daughter. "Watch carefully, Hanabi. Neji has the strongest Byakugan in generations, and Naruto is heir to the oldest bloodline in existance."

"Yes, father."

Genma raised his voice. "The first match will be Neji Hyuga versus Naruto..." He trailed off, looking at the second Genin. He knew his orders, but he wanted to get Naruto's confirmation first.

Naruto nodded. "Proctor, go ahead and say it. They are bound to know."

Genma smirked. "Neji Hyuga versus Naruto Uzumaki-Namikaze Sol Alfitaria." Immediately following Genma's declaration was an uproar, mostly from the civilians. In response, Naruto unclasped his jacket and threw it aside, fully revealing the crystal in his cheek as well as the one on his chest that his low-cut shirt showed.

"Let the first match begin!" Genma shouted, before jumping back.

0o0o0o0o0

**A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! Really sorry about the wait!**


End file.
